


Lordbug, Robin, and Kitty Noir

by CadenceH2O



Category: Batman - All Media Types, Maribat - Fandom, Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Gen, IDENTITY SHENANIGANS, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Self-Harm, Suicidal Attempts, Suicidal Thoughts
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-02
Updated: 2020-12-07
Packaged: 2021-03-10 04:34:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 15
Words: 31,294
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27838414
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CadenceH2O/pseuds/CadenceH2O
Summary: Paris, the City of Love, was the last place Damian wanted to be. That is, until he meets a certain blue-eyed bluenette, and adds another alter ego to his list of identities. Luckily for him, he's not the only one with alter egos.
Relationships: Luka Couffaine/Kagami Tsurugi, Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug/Damian Wayne
Comments: 86
Kudos: 226





	1. In Which Damian Saves The Day In A Spotted Spandex

—

“I’m going to be late for school!” Marinette blubbered as she gathered her things chaotically, shoving them into her backpack clumsily. “Bye mama, papa!” 

“Bye sweetie, see you after school!” Sabine called out with a laugh as her bumbling daughter raced out the door in hurry, her pigtails dancing like the dark blue frills of a ballgown as she dashed to school. 

—

“I do not understand why I have to school in Paris!” Damian protested, stomping his foot on the floor to make a point. “I do not wish to be among idiots who barely speak English!” 

“But you speak French.” Dick pointed out with a chuckle, an amused glint sparkling in the acrobat's eyes. “You can communicate via French.” 

“I want to stay in Gotham as Robin!” Damian growled, glaring at his father, who only shrugged. 

“Look, it’s only this or the Teen Titans, and seeing as you already don’t agree with them, the only other choice is to go with Alfred’s old master.” Bruce told him monotonously, stating that it was the end of the argument. 

Alfred noted neutrally, looking up from the glasses that he was polishing. “I am sure that Master Fu would be delighted to have you, Master Wayne.” 

Growling angrily at his defeat in the argument, Damian stormed off into his room, refusing to speak to his father before his flight to Paris. 

—

After landing in Paris, Damian realised that no, he didn’t _dislike_ the city, he _hated_ it. The city of love and romance- Ironic, seeing as he hated love and romance and had no intention of getting acquainted with anyone at all. Upon getting off the plane, Damian decided that he was going to be worse little shit he could be- He’d be so bad that Alfred’s ‘Master Fu’ would send him home within two weeks. Smirking with his plan in mind, Damian forced a smile, catching a cab to ‘Master Fu’s massage shop. 

—

“Damian! You have finally arrived.” Master Fu, a senile old man, greeted with a smile. “Your bedroom is upstairs, left to the stairs.” A green ‘fairy’ that Alfred had told him mildly about greeted him cheerily. 

“Hello! I’m Wayzz.” The ‘kwami’ as Alfred had called it- Smiled at him. “I’ll show you to your room.” 

Damian rolled his eyes, having seen enough of astonishing sights to not even flinch at the sight of the weird-looking fairy-sized turtle. Paris was going to have to up its' game if it wanted to surprise him. 

—

Marinette was _furious_ , to say the least. So, that blonde boy- Adrien Agreste- Was trying to put gum on her seat?! And he was friends with _Chloe_? Chloe had _friends_? Brushing the angry thought away, Marinette grumbled to herself, starting on her journey home, but not before she saw an old man attempting to cross a four-lane road. 

Rushing forward to help him (Because that’s what nice people do!) she aided him across the road, smiling as she did so. However, in her kind act, her bag- Which she had left unzipped- Poured out its contents chaotically, making the girl shriek in panic. She apologised swiftly, her hands wiggling around in panic as she gathered her items, not noticing when he sneaked a little hexagonal box into her bag. The old man smiled quietly to himself as the girl scurried away, the concentration of chaos in the air around her increasing by ten-fold. 

—

“So, you’re a Kwami, huh?” Damian asked, scoffing at the green turtle, looking it up and down as if he was a fashion critic. 

Wayzz raised an eyebrow (Turtles have eyebrows?) at this. “I wonder why Master took you in if he knew you were going to be this rude.” 

Damian rolled his eyes, annoyance vibrating off him in waves as he slumped down into the corner of his new bed. “As if I want to be here at all.” 

The Kwami harrumphed angrily, fed up with the boy. When the Kwami had flown out of sight, Damian decided that he was going to do some sneaking around before the master returned. Sneaking downstairs, he approached the table in which many Chinese ornaments were displayed. Curious, he inspected each one of them carefully before he came across a small, hexagonal box. Seeing the latch easily opened, Damian picked up the box, opening it. 

If he expected something to happen, his expectations were exceeded by a mile. When a red ball of light approached him, his first reaction had been to back away, because how does one react in such a situation? 

“Hello! I’m Tikki, and I’m the Kwami of Creation.” The Kwami introduced, its' squeaky voice irritating Damian instantly. “You’re the new holder of the Ladybug miraculous!” 

Damian gulped. He did not want that. “I’m sorry, but I opened you by accident. Please go back.” 

But no, Tikki refused. “You opened me, and I can sense that you _are_ a Ladybug. I’m not letting you renounce me.”

Damian raised an eyebrow tentatively, looking up defiantly. “I _do not_ want to be a Ladybug.” 

Tikki shrugged her little shoulders. “Well, you don’t have a choice.” 

“How do I renounce you?” Damian asked, voice cold and steel, showing the little red fairy who was in control of the situation. “Tell me.” 

Tikki sighed dejectedly. If only Damian noticed that the corners of her little Kwami-mouth were twitching upwards... “Fine. Just say ‘Tikki, Spots on’.” 

Clearly, Damian wasn’t thinking. Before he knew it, the Kwami had transformed the spotted earrings in the box into a spotted ring- And had placed it on him- And the next thing he knew, he was standing in a spotted spandex. Wonderful.

He couldn’t believe he’d been tricked by a small fairy Kwami. He asked for her to come back out, but she didn’t, which was _very_ upsetting for the vigilante standing in a spotted spandex that he found absolutely _embarrassing. But then the radio sparkled to life_. 

“Paris has never seen these things before! A stone monster is terrorising Paris, destroying buildings, and the monster won’t be stopped by the police! Who will save us?” The news reported sounded genuinely terrified, which sparked Damian's interest, despite how ridiculous the report sounded. 

Sighing, Damian- In a spotted spandex- Decided that, fine, he’d have to save the day in a spotted spandex. 

—

“Mama, I’m home!” Marinette called out cheerily. 

“Oh honey, thank god you’re safe. There’s a monster all over the news channel!” Sabine thanked all the gods known to humankind, enveloping her daughter in a tight hug. 

“I’m fine, mom.” Marinette chuckled, heading up to her room, uncaring of the monster raging outside. 

An unfamiliar hexagonal box tumbled out of her bag as she set it down to retrieve her homework of the day, the foreign box catching the bluenette's interest. Red embellishments lined the box in lines and curves that only continued to attract the fashion-designer-in-training. 

“What’s this?” Marinette murmured, opening the box in curiosity.

“I’m Plagg, and I’m your Kwami.” The black thing flew out of the box, speaking in a bored tone, as if he'd rather be anywhere else. Marinette screeched, dropping the box out of shocking and backtracking from the creature as if it was a tiger with bared fangs instead of a sparrow-sized god of destruction. 

“MOM! THere’s a- A- A FLYING COCKROACH!” She screamed, swatting the thing away. The cat Kwami panicked, shushing her by sealing her lips with his tiny hands. 

“SHUSH! SHUSH!” He hissed, his green eyes pressed into slits. “I”m _not_ a cockroach! I’m so much more above those _pests.”_

Marinette panted, staring at the thing sitting on her nose. “Then what are you?” 

“You’d have known if you listened before you started screaming like crazy.” Plagg tsked in annoyance. After explaining everything, including her powers and such, he told her the magic words.

“So, I just say Plagg, claws out?” It came out as more of a question than a command, but that started off the transformation nonetheless. 

Oh boy.

—

“The stone monsters are still raging through Paris- That’s right, there’s more that one now. However, there is now hope for the people! A superhero in a spotted suit has shown up, swinging from building to building! Paris has hope, so hang on, people!” 

Marinette- Transformed- Listened to the news report downstairs, eyes wide in horror. “Well, I guess I have to go help the superhero?” She sounded unsure of herself, but she unlatched the window, sticking a leg out. Plagg had said that she couldn’t let anyone know of her identity, so she’d have to sneak past her parents. 

Taking a deep breath, the girl murmured to herself under her breath. “Here’s to nothing.” 

—

It wasn’t that hard to find him. 

He was making a horrible racket, swinging as he attacked the monsters, desperately trying to find the ‘akumatised’ item, as he’d gathered after he returned to Fu’s place to ask Wayzz ‘What the heck, I can’t kill them’.

A black-clad figure had appeared to help him out, and between both of them, they made an even bigger racket. Marinette- Still nameless- Realised with a jolt that the monster was one of her classmates. 

Together, they led the monster into the auditorium, where fewer people would get hurt. Damian had given the black-dressed girl a point for that thought grudgingly. 

“His fist!” The girl had yelled, gesturing to the monster. Damian came to the realisation that yeah, the monster never unclenched his fist. That must be where the akuma was, he thought. Reluctantly giving the girl another point for cleverness, Damian swooped down with his yoyo thing (He preferred his grappling hook) and tried to open the fist- But failed- And was sent flying across the auditorium. Ouch. 

“Maybe- Maybe!” The girl had yelled, letting the monster pick her up without a fight. He had furrowed his eyebrows at her, thinking ‘What a stupid move’, but then he figured out what she was trying to do. And gave her _one more point_. 

Eventually, they got a hold of his akuma thingy- With the help of him yelling ‘Lucky Charm’ (He swore he’d never do it again). She’d cataclymsed it, and he, after some fiddling with that darned yoyo, managed to catch the butterfly. 

“You did a good job out there, just now.” He admitted with a tight smile. The girl was clearly inexperienced, but she had the wits and awareness to be a vigilante if she trained. 

“You too.” She smiled sweetly at him, being slightly nervous, he noticed, as she fiddled with her baton thing. “Um, you are?” 

_Shit._

He didn’t think of a name! Fumbling with his words, he spluttered out: “Uh, Lordbug.” He said simply, his French rolling smoothly off his tongue.. He wasn’t intending on using the Kwami ever again, so it didn’t matter. “And you?” He couldn’t help but ask. 

She pondered for a while. Then she smiled. “Kitty Noir.” 

—


	2. In Which Damian Gets Soaked

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cross-posted from my tumblr (@/cadenceh2o)

—

 _Kitty Noir_. Damian hummed under his breath, the name sounding around his head. _Black Kitty_. Hey, at least his ‘partner’ had a name worse than _Lordbug_. 

“Damian! How dare you take the Ladybug miraculous without telling me!” To say that Fu was furious was an understatement of the century. Wayzz had, of course, told his master once Damian bounded back to ask ‘What the hell I can’t kill them’. 

Damian tried not to look guilty (Because he _didn’t_ feel guilty, really!), and gave Master Fu a bored expression. “Face it, Fu, if I didn’t take the miraculous, those _m_ _onsters_ would still be out there.” 

Master Fu tried to think of a good punishment, and then walla- There the solution was. “Damian, as your punishment, you _will_ be the Ladybug miraculous holder until after Hawkmoth is defeated." 

The horrified on Damian's face was worth everything, thought Master Fu with a chuckle. 

—

Damian groaned, slamming face-down onto his bed in the Chinese-themed room. Great. He was stuck with ‘Lordbug’ permanently. If he knew that was going to happen, he wouldn’t have come up with such a cringy name.

“Are you okay, Damian?” Tikki’s chirpy voice asked him worriedly. The Kwami floated around, fussing over him in a motherly way. 

“Do I look okay to you?” Damian snapped, having swapped from French to English in the heat of his anger. His eyes burned with fury- At being _shipped_ off to a random city, and then being burdened with a new alter ego out of nowhere. 

“Well, if you want me to speak English, I can.” The Kwami offered helpfully, looking slightly proud of the wide range of languages she could speak. “I’ve been to England before.” 

“Just shut up and go away!” Damian growled loudly at the Kwami, who flinched, clearly afraid of the dark-haired boy, who planted himself back in his bed, refusing to do anything else to kill the time. 

—

“Marinette! Wake up, kid! You’re going to be late!” The cat Kwami fussed over his holder as she got up groggily. The two had bonded overnight, after Marinette discovered Plagg's ultimate weakness- Cheese. The tiny god had slept curled up against his new holder's cheek as the night sky watched over Paris and the exhausted teen, the kwami snoring in content until sunlight bathed the bluenette's room. 

“I’m up- Goodness, what time is it?” Replied Marinette groggily, rubbing her eyes tiredly as she stretched, getting over her initial shock of seeing tiny, black creature after remembering the events of the day before. 

“It’s already seven!” Plagg screeched inhumanely, dragging Marinette’s bag towards her but failing due to its weight and his size, causing the girl to laugh lightly as she picked the bag up, cuddling the little Kwami even while he protested. 

“Alright, grumpy kitty.” Marinette chuckled, running a hand through her dark hair. “Let’s go to school.” 

And for once, she wasn’t late. 

When she stepped into her class, though, it seemed that a lying fox had beat her and was earlier than she was. 

“Hi everyone, I’m Lila Rossi. Please take care of me.” The girl introduced in smiles and sunshine and rainbows- Before taking a seat at Marinette’s place. 

“Um, sorry. That’s my place.” Marinette apologised. 

“Oh, I’m so sorry. I have hearing problems. I _must_ sit here.” The girl pouted sympathetically. “Besides, shouldn’t you be taking care of that new boy?” 

“Yea, girl.” Alya grinned, looping her arm around Lila’s affectionately. “I’ll take care of Lila.” 

Marinette turned, meeting eyes with a dark-haired boy sitting at the very end of class. He frowned at her, watching her as she headed up to him, plopping down next to him. 

“I’m Marinette.” She smiled sweetly. “The teacher told me about you. You must be Damian." 

He nodded curtly. "Damian Wayn- Fu." He coughed to cover up his mistake. "Damian Fu."

Inside her bag, Plagg peeked out, glancing at the green-eyed boy venomously, already disliking Damian's cold attitude. “How could Tikki choose such a holder?” The Kwami hissed angrily. “He isn’t worthy of my kitten!” 

—

“Thank you.” Damian thanked, not really being thankful but just being polite. Marinette shot him a sweet smile. 

“No problem! Should we get back to class?” Marinette smiled. 

—

It was going to be his first night patrolling. He stashed a few knifes and Batarangs into his utility belt, and agreed, rather reluctantly, to let Tikki come along. 

Opening the window to get out of the stuffy bedroom, he shot off his grappling hook, retracting it as he leaped out of the window into the dark nocturnal atmosphere. 

Jumping from building to building was quite the stress reliever for him, a flush of lights and colours showing the blend of the city of love. Tikki, safely hidden inside his hood, watched everything with an eye of awe. She had never really gotten to see Paris- Or whatever city it was at that time- Because she was always in the transformation when her Ladybugs went swinging by. She had never been able to enjoy the beautiful view, or the _thrill_. Clearly, Damian was enjoying himself, too. 

After a while, the Kwami of creation had fallen asleep, only to be awoken when she felt the vibrations of her holder speaking to himself. “Who’s- Is that? The girl… From this morning-” Damian was murmuring a random string of his thoughts, flinching slightly when he felt Tikki stir. 

“What’s wrong, Damian?” She chirped, peeking out of his hood to see him standing on a taller building overlooking a girl on a lit balcony of a bakery. “Is that… The girl that showed you around this morning?” _And Plagg’s holder?_

“Yeah. Her name… I think… Marinette?” Damian was halfway between murmuring to Tikki and himself, stranding off into his own thoughts. 

“You should go talk to her.” Tikki encouraged. _It would be a good idea for Damian to become friends with Plagg’s holder’s civilian identity_. 

Scoffing, Damian turned away, preparing to move on with his patrol. “You can’t tell me what to do.” 

—

“Um… Who are you?” Marinette asked awkwardly as a black, red, and yellow dressed superhero landed on her balcony. It wasn't everyday a vigilante perched himself on your balcony railing, you know. 

“R-Robin.” The boy seemed to blushing as he balanced himself on the railing of her balcony, growling under his breath once a while at what seemed to be a voice in his ear. An earpiece, perhaps?

“I’m Marinette.” She smiled kindly, eyes twinkling into crescents. “Nice to meet you, Robin.” 

“W-What are you doing out this late? It’s dark and cold out.” Robin murmured, stepping off the railing and onto the balcony. 

Marinette shrugged, a puff of white air diffusing into the night from her lips. “The night view. It’s breathtaking, isn’t it?” 

Robin turned to look at Paris, with it’s glistening yellow lights, and the faraway silhouette of the Eiffel tower. 

He didn’t dislike Paris. He _hated_ it. 

“Yeah, it’s breathtaking.” 

—

“Morning, Damian!” A chirpy voice called out, and Damian spun around to come face to face with Marinette Dupain-Cheng. Tikki giggled under his hood, but a quick warning swat warned her to stay quiet, although that didn’t stop her from teasing him later. 

“Dupain-Cheng.” He greeted with a little smile, because honestly, was anyone able to resist smiling around the little angel? Surely not. 

“Let’s head to class!” She beamed, pointing in the direction of her- Their- Class, and nodding reluctantly, he was dragged by the little angel into their class. 

—

They were walking out of school together, simply because 1, there was no one else to walk with (Alya had been occupied with Lila ever since the new girl transferred in, and Marinette didn't feel like interrupting her best friend's conversation with the Italian student), and 2, they were going in the same direction. 

“It’s raining.” Marinette sighed mournfully, already picturing herself getting home soaked. She picked at her clothes, apologising before-hand for the storm that they were going to have to bear. 

“Well observed.” Damian commented with a smirk, raising his hands in surrender when she glared at him. 

“Marinette!” A blonde called, racing out from the school doors. Adrien Agreste. “I- Sorry for yesterday. I was only trying to get the gum off your chair.” He apologised sincerely. Her bluebell eyes widened at his apology, her face flushing when it occurred to her that she might've judged him wrongly. “Um, it looks like you don’t have an umbrella. Why don’t you take mine-”

Before Marinette could say anything, Damian did. He pushed Agreste’s umbrella away, smiling tightly. “No need.” Drawing an umbrella out of his bag, he opened it in one fluid motion, smiling at his little angel. 

“Shall we?” 

She laughed lightly, grabbing his arm as she jumped into the rain with him, causing him to groan. “You made my shoes wet!” He grumbled, only earning another laughter and a hasty apology from her. 

“Sorry. There’s a dryer in the bakery, so maybe you could get your clothes dry before you go home.” Marinette suggested, brushing a strand of wet hair out of her face. 

“No thank you.” Damian turned her down, refusing straight-forwardly.

She pouted. “But-”

Before she could finish, though, Chloe’s car drove past, and upon her instruction, the driver splashed through a large puddle. Marinette flinched and braced for the impact, but not before Damian shoved the umbrella in front of her. However, in the green-eyed boy’s quick thinking to protect her, he forgot about himself, getting drenched in the process. 

Glancing down at his wet clothes, Damian sighed. “Maybe I’ll take up your offer on the dryer.”

Looking at his more-or-less dry holder from inside Marinette’s bag, Plagg sighed. “I guess I should’ve know better than to doubt Tikki’s choice. Perhaps he is deserving of my cat after all.” 

—

“Oh! I just got an idea!” Marinette suddenly burst out on their way to her bakery. Damian eyed her warily. 

“What is it?” He asked cautiously, a bad feeling trickling up his spine, foreshadowing the events of the next few minutes. 

“You could leave your clothes in the dryer, and you can go home in some of the clothes I made!” She grinned. “I’m quite sure I could find something that’d fit you.” 

“You design your own clothes?” He definitely did not see that one coming. A familiar glint approached her eyes, and Damian felt his heart jolt all of a sudden, his breath clogging in his throat. 

It was the same glint that Grayson always had when he spoke of Koriand'r, it was the same glint that Todd had when he played with his stray dog, Bacon, and it was the same glint that Drake had when a new case appeared. 

It was a glint of _passion_. 

And it would be the same glint in Damian’s eyes when he thought about his angel.

—

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Leave a comment and tell me what you think :3 
> 
> So I'm re-reading this whole thing and g o s h my writing was terrible back then, it's so... Bland. I'll come back at a later date when I'm free to spice up the words a little,,, I'm cringing so bad while editing this. The tenses aren't consistent and there isn't much imagery and devices throughout.


	3. In Which Damian Falls Off A Building

—

Robin didn’t know where he was going but the final destination was totally not intended to be Dupain-Cheng’s balcony. He got… Lost. Admitting he was lost was better than to admit that he’d somehow strayed onto a girl’s balcony. 

“R- Um, who are you?” He nearly _screeched_ , and the Robin does _not_ screech. But when he turned around, he came face to face with the same black-clad girl who he’d fought with (As Lordbug) when the first akuma came around. 

“I’m Robin.” He had to remind himself not to tell her off for remembering his name. Afterall, it was her first time meeting him as Robin. 

“Oh. Hi, Robin, I’m Kitty Noir.” She smiled, and Damian couldn’t help but feel that the words were a little familiar. “So, you’re a superhero?” 

“Yeah.” Damian scoffed. Wasn’t it obvious? Who else in their right mind would run around the city at night dressed in a primary-colour suit? 

“Then…” She blushed, red blossoms blooming across her cheeks as she flushed in embarrassment. “Could you teach me the ropes? I was only recently, um, pushed into this… Superhero business. Could you… Teach me?” 

Apparently, little angel wasn’t the only person Damian couldn’t say no to. 

—

“Be careful.” He warned as she prepared to leap off a building. Probably not what you encourage people to do, but hey. That was Damian. And he was teaching his… Superhero… Partner? Friend? Neighbour? how to successfully tap into her instincts. And if it wasn’t successful… Well, he hadn’t thought that far. Yet. He would think of it when the time came. _If_ the time came. 

She nodded, taking a deep breath. Damian felt his chest constrict, as if he was worried. Scoffing to himself, he shook his head to clear out his mind. Why was he worried, anyway? She was the one who wanted to try it. He wasn’t responsible. ( _He was._ ) 

“Here I go.” She breathed, extending her baton before she leaped off. Damian sucked in a breath. Was she alright- 

“Woo!” She swung right back up, triumphant. Landing a little clumsily on the next building, she sent Damian a bright grin. “I did it! Did you see?” 

Rolling his eyes and letting go of a breath he was for some reason holding, he nodded. “Yeah, I saw it. It wasn’t bad for a beginner like you.” He had intended the remark to be cutting, but the girl only beamed at him. Any insult would just bounce off her, he thought with a sigh. 

“Thanks so much, Robin.” 

And for some reason, Tikki was giggling again. It was honestly annoying to have a tiny spotted fairy constantly giggling at your ear. What was she giggling about this time? 

—

“That was great!” He was breathless. This girl that probably just started superhero work- Was _amazing_. She had managed to achieve everything he’d shown her so far. 

Kitty Noir blushed, feeling her cheeks flush on the autumn air. “Thanks to you, birdie.” 

He frowned at the nickname, but if he liked it, he didn’t show it. As they were heading back (To no apparent destination) Kitty Noir- Marinette- Couldn’t help but stare, because _damn_. That was one fine ass. 

Robin stopped abruptly, but not before he was knocked off balance by the girl who failed to stop behind him. This ended up with him on the rooftop, pinned down. 

It was really awkward, and he could hear Tikki giggling again. 

“Um, I- I’m so sorry! I didn’t see you stop, I um, sorry so I- No wait! I’m sorry so- I’m so- So I’m- I’m sORRY!” She didn’t see him stop- She was really too busy staring at his ass. It was one fine ass. 

“Uh. It’s fine. Can you get up, please?” His voice was constricted and awkward and he couldn’t wait to get home. She nodded clumsily, getting off him- Before slipping. 

“Kitty!” He called out, watching her squeal as she desperately tried to find something to cling onto before nearing the edge of the rooftop, onto a five-floor-drop. His blood ran cold. 

Shooting off the grappling hook, he jumped, catching her by her waist right before she fell over the edge. “I’ve got you.” He told her, his breath panting. He looked around, trying to find a way so that they could land properly, but his left hand was already starting to ache by supporting her, and his right was holding onto his grappling hook. There was no way he’d be able to get a safe landing for the both of them. 

He unlatched the grappling hook, holding her to his chest as they plummeted towards the ground. Flipping her upwards so he’d absorb the impact, he groaned, making contact to the ground. Yep, at least two broken ribs and a dislocated arm. At least he was still alive. That was a bright side. 

—

“I uh… Fell off the… Stairs?” Explaining himself to little angel was a little difficult. Marinette looked at him with extreme worry. Well, he wasn’t that good of a sight. Apparently, he’d bruised half of his face when he fell, too. 

“R-Right. I know you’re lying, you know.” She crossed her arms. Of course she knew what really happened to Robin. She was the one that caused him such injuries. After they got up, he’d checked that she was fine- (Even when he was the one that took the fall!) and said that he’d go find his… Friend, Marinette. Kitty Noir had panicked, of course, and made up a crappy excuse to rush home. Robin, who was probably too injured to protest, watched her go before he shot off his grappling hook, getting to little angel’s place. “Sit down, I’ll get you some hot chocolate and some bandages.” 

Robin nodded thankfully. He wasn’t sure how Fu would’ve dealt with him getting home with broken ribs and a dislocated shoulder- And he was quite sure he didn’t want to find out, as he suspected that the man was still angry at him. 

“Damian!” Tikki immediately fussed over him the moment Marinette was out of hearing. “Oh god, you’re so injured!” She squealed. Robin hissed at her. 

“Don’t use my name. Not here.” He told her sternly, but it seemed as if the Kwami had gotten completely used to him using harsh tones on her, and only proceeded to worry over him. 

“Let me help.” Tikki murmured, using her tiny flap-like hands to create a small glowing ball, pressing it into Damian’s chest. Immediately, he felt his ribs piece themselves back together, and his back’s soreness- Well, it got _slightly_ better. 

When they heard Marinette coming up the stairs, though, Tikki quickly hid back inside his hood. 

“I got you some chocolate.” She smiled, handing him the cup. “It’s hot though, so be careful.” She begin to set down some of the other things she had brought- Bandages, disinfectant- The usual things that Alfred would have once the Bats returned from a hectic day of patrol. She dabbed gently at his wounds as he sipped on the hot chocolate, feeling the warm liquid dribble down his throat, providing more aid to soothing his extremely sore back that he’d fell on. Honestly, he could’ve died if he snapped his neck. However, probably thanks to Tikki’s luck- He didn’t. He knew it was the right choice to let the Kwami tag onto his patrol nights.

“You’re really battered up. It’s a miracle you even survived.” Marinette murmured under her breath. “Stupid selfless idiot.” 

“Stupid selfless what?” Robin raised an eyebrow. The girl only blushed more, not saying anything else. “Stupid selfless what?” He repeated. 

Marinette huffed at him. “Kitty Noir dropped over just now. She told me what happened and told me to prepare my first aid kit.” She could hear Plagg’s approval at the flawless spontaneous lie she’d come up with on the spot. 

Robin sighed. That explained it. There were already some bandages and bottles of medicine on the balcony when he dropped by. That explained why she was so ready for him. And also why she didn’t believe his ‘I fell off the stairs’ theory. 

“You stupid selfless idiot.” Marinette repeated, agitating herself as she repeated same phrase again, dabbing on his wounds a little harder than she had meant to. Robin winced visibly, sucking in a breath to hold in the pain As soon as she noticed this movement, she apologised hastily. “Sorry.” She sighed. “I’m just worried about you.” 

“I’m fine, angel.” Robin smiled, caressing her face gently. “I’m fine.” 

“A-Angel?” She stuttered, blushing wildly. “W-What’s with the nickname?” 

Robin shrugged. “You’re just an angel. You’re not as insufferable as everyone else, you’re kind, generous, and you mind space. That makes you already better than fifty percent of the population. And it makes you my personal angel.” 

Maybe… That glint was already in him.

—

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> JSJKSJKJSK THIS WHOLE THING REQUIRES A HUGE RE-EDIT SO ONCE I'M DONE CROSSPOSTING ALL THE CHAPTERS PLEASE DON'T EXPECT ANY NEW ONES UNTIL I'M SATISFIED WITH THIS POOR EXCUSE OF A FANFICTION- 
> 
> Thanks for reading and putting up with my terrible tenses from a year ago,,, God, what kind of monstrosity did I create last year,,, Leave a comment? If you feel like it anyway, this thing doesn't deserve comments yet with the quality level that it's at...


	4. In Which They Did Some Ass-Kicking

—

An akuma was raging downtown. It was the teacher instead of the student that time, Damian thought dryly as he rushed to the toilet with his Robin uniform in hand. 

“Damian, you need to go as Lordbug!” Tikki told him worriedly. “Or else you can’t purify-”

Slamming the toilet door close, Damian refused. “I’m _not_ going as Lordbug. I’ll change to Lordbug later if necessary.” 

—

“Robin!” Kitty Noir breathed a sigh of relief- And tried to dissipate a faint blush- When she saw the familiar boy swoop over, dodging an attack from the akuma, a teacher fed up with Chloe’s antics. “Great to see you. Um, did you see…” Ducking another blow, Kitty Noir searched for the spotted superhero’s name in her mind. “Lordbug?” 

Robin grunted, biting his lip as the akuma barely scratched him, just nearly missing his eye, leaving a clear, red, gash down next to his mask. “No, I’m here to help you, though. He’ll swoop by later to purify the akuma.” 

Kitty Noir was obviously slightly annoyed by this, and Robin felt a pang of guiltiness at the fact that his partner didn’t like his alter ego. Well, who could, with a name as ridiculous as Lordbug (He knew that the name was a _ridiculous_ decision)?! 

“That drat bug.” She muttered angrily under her breath as she whacked the teacher in the head, apologising as she did. “Sorry!” Robin shot her a weird expression. 

“Why’d you apologise?” He asked, scrunching up his face in confusion as he threw another Batarang in the direction of the akuma. 

Kitty only shrugged. “Habit. I don’t hit people very often, you know.” With a laugh, she asked: “Do you?” 

Robin scoffed. “Hey, I’m not a bad guy, okay?” 

Together, they took down the akuma, with Robin distracting it while Kitty jumped in and ran off with the item- A lipstick. When she turned back, Robin was gone, and the akuma had just spotted her. 

“Ah, crap.” Kitty murmured under her breath before taking off, running away from the growling akuma. 

—

She was dead cornered. 

The akuma stepped forward menacingly, a wicked grin splattered over her dark, black lips as she crept towards Kitty Noir- Exactly like a predator would corner a prey. 

_I’m not a prey_. She told herself, _Think. There must be a way_. 

She was running out of time. If she was poisoned by the akuma, Lordbug would go help Robin, right? Robin wouldn’t be alone? 

_No, Lordbug didn’t show up. He wouldn’t be reliable enough._ With a determined grit, Kitty swung herself towards the akuma, kicking her in the face, extending her baton as the akuma groaned in pain, clutching at their face (Where there was a mark of her foot), getting away from her dead end. 

_Robin needs me_. She panted in her head, repeating the phrase. _Well, he doesn’t, but he would be better off with a little help. I won’t let him fight alone_. Repeating the phrase again once more for effect, she tried to ignore the gradually crescending volume of the akuma’s footsteps and _cackles_ from behind her. _Keep running. Robin. Robin._

“Get away from her!” A familiar voice- 

_Robin?_

She turned around to see someone kick the akuma in the face (Again, the poor thing), growling in anger. A yoyo whizzed past her, and she realised that no, it wasn’t Robin she was looking at, feeling a pang of disappointment hit her in the gut. 

_It was Lordbug_. 

—

“About time you showed up.” She grumbled, refusing to meet him in the face, and then she remembered. How could she forget? “Where’s Robin?” She asked frantically. Was he okay? Was he injured? 

Lordbug coughed suspiciously before he scoffed. “I came all the way here to catch your akuma, and the first thing you say to me is ‘Where’s Robin?’”

Kitty Noir huffed. “Right. We could’ve handled everything just fine without you.” The only thing he even did was kick the akuma ( _Once_ ) and demanded her to Cataclysm the object before simply _swinging_ that dratted yoyo that made that _annoying_ noise to catch the black butterfly. “In fact, why don’t you just give that… Yoyo to Robin? Then we could both handle everything, and you don’t have to _come all the way here_ to catch our akuma.”

He seemed to momentarily choke on some non-existent object, and if it was a normal person (As in, someone who wasn’t _Lordbug_ ), she would show a _little_ worry, but with Lordbug, she only scrutinised him, scoffing dryly. 

"You don’t have to come next time.” She spat at him, angry. He lifted a hand to wipe a scratch off his dotted mask (When did he even get hurt, anyway? He literally just appeared _two seconds ago_ ), and if she paid attention to the act, she would’ve noticed that 1, there was a little faded scar of a gash- Right next to his mask, where _Robin_ had gotten scratched- and 2, that his mask had changed from the first time they met- It had developed sharpened, curving-downwards pointers- Just like how Robin’s was. 

He watched her go, turning down an alley to de-transform back into his Robin uniform. "Back to school. Hopefully, angel’s okay.”

—

"Dupain-Cheng!” Damian called out, catching the dark-haired girl exit the toilet. "What were you doing in the toilet! There was an akuma attack! You should’ve evacuated with everyone else!”

Marinette laughed nervously. "Sorry, I… Got stuck.”

"For _thirty minutes_?”

"And what about you? I saw you go into the toilet, too.” She replied with a cocky grin. Damian blushed, unable to come up with a refutation. 

—

“Angel?” Robin knocked softly on the trapdoor leading into her room. "Angel?” He repeated a little louder this time, hoping she was in her room. When he gained no reply, he swung down to one of her windows, sighing fondly (And in relief) when he saw her engrossed in her work by her desk, earplugs stuck firmly as she nodded along to the beat. "How cute.” He murmured, Tikki nodding in agreement. 

"She is cute!” She chirped, nudging him. "Why don’t you knock on the other window? It might gain her attention.” 

Robin was going to ignore the Kwami, but the urge of seeing his angel was too large. 

_Tap. Tap. Tap tap._

Marinette looked up, glancing around in confusion before she saw emerald eyes, looking straight at hers- From outside the window. Bluebell orbs brightening, she hurried over to the window, grinning as she let him in. 

"Patrol?” She asked, humming as she continued to do the work, watching him sink down next to her lounge chair out of the corner of her eye. 

“Yeah. Kitty Noir was supposed to join me tonight, but she didn’t show up. Guess she was busy.” Robin shrugged. Marinette jolted, remembering with a start. Right, she had scheduled patrols with Robin!

"S-Sorry-” Wait, why was she saying sorry? He wasn’t supposed to know that she was- 

Robin had caught her mistake, narrowing his eyes as he sat up, looking at her. “Why are you sorry?" 

—

Damian pondered the question circulating around his head. Why was she sorry? Tikki- Well, Tikki was frustrating herself out. Damian was in love with Marinette. Marinette was Kitty Noir, who- Obviously- Liked Damian- Robin- But Damian didn’t like Kitty Noir. Not really. 

Tikki sighed. As always, there was always some sort of romantic love-square trouble between the Cat and and the Ladybug. _Always_. Except now, one of them had an alter, alter ego. That throws in another one to the mix. Well, she was the Kwami of luck, after all. Maybe with her around, and if she crossed her paws- Flippers- Whatever those things are, really- Maybe, the two would start unravelling their love story. 

—

"Um… Why’re you here?” Marinette asked awkwardly, feeling no sort of feelings whatsoever for the boy standing in front of her. 

"To make sure you aren’t late.” Damian scoffed, running through the various ways the scenario could go in his mind, frantically panicking inside as he did so. 

Marinette smiled in amusement, eyes twinkling sweetly under the morning light of Paris. "Okay, let’s go!” 

—

She was alone. Now was the chance, Lila thought. 

"Marinette. Can I talk to you?” She asked sweetly, smiling for effect. The girl looked at her, confused, tucking her bag into her locker. 

“Um, yes, sure?” She smiled tightly. 

“Stay _away_ from Alya. And Adrien. And practically _everyone_ , if you don’t want me to _destroy_ your life.” The girl told her simply. Marinette narrowed her eyes, not quite understanding. 

"Stay away?” She questioned. 

“Is that a challenge? I’ll show you just what I can do.” Before the dark-haired girl could make another comment, the lying fox and fled the room, crying. 

—

"It-It-It was Marinette!” Lila sobbed, clinging onto Alya for support as the classmates gathered sympathetically around her. "She- She- She threatened saying that if I didn’t- B- B- Back off, she’d make all my friends turn against me!" 

"What?” Alya was appalled. “When?" 

"J-Just now, in the locker room.” Lila hiccupped, wiping some of her 'tears’ away. 

"That’s not possible.” Damian cut in, entering the room, having overhead the conversation as he was walking in. "I just saw Marinette.” _Yes, and he also just saw Lila randomly and spontaneously start **crying** straight after running from the room. But he couldn’t just say that- He had no proof. But he would be more careful next time, and he would get proof to clear his angel innocent. _

****"Y-You’re saying that just to c-c-cover for her.” Lila whimpered, beginning to sniffle again.

"What’s going on?” Marinette asked, breathless as she entered the classroom. Could it be that Lila already carried out her threat…? 

“Marinette! How could you say such things to Lila!" 

"Marinette! How could you?" 

"You’re too much!" 

"D-Don’t blame her, guys. She-She’s just jealous of me.” Lila sniffled. “Marinette, if you want, you can have your seat back." 

The round of protests and harsh comments at Marinette from the class arose again, and Marinette felt _claustrophobic_. They were being _too loud_. There were too many things being said _at once_. She could hear bits and pieces of everything that everyone was saying, and it was killing her inside. Then she heard his voice, flowing smoothly through every other single noise in the room. 

” _I’ve got you, angel_.“ 

_Robin?_

_—_

"Are you okay?” He asked her softly after escorting her out of the class. Seconds after the words left his mouth, he wanted to smack his head onto a wall. What a stupid question! Of course she wasn’t!

“Y-Yeah. I’m fine.” She hiccupped, trying to control her breaths, embarrassed about crying in front of someone as regal as _Damian_. Damian, who was always composed and cool- And she’d tried to get to his level, too. She wanted to be a cool friend who wouldn’t embarrass him- Because she knew he wouldn’t want that. 

“No, you’re not. Cry it out." 

And she did. 

If Damian was born with a certain objective- Purpose- (Besides killing people, and he wasn’t allowed to do that anymore)- Then he believed that he had fulfilled it, right then and there, with her, softly crying in his arms- Because he had never felt any less out of place than right then.

_—_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Leave a comment and tell me what you think :3


	5. In Which Marinette Makes New Friends!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TRIGGER WARNING: Self-harm, suicidal attempts, do NOT read if you're not comfortable with it :)

—

Marinette was _terrified_ of Lila.

The girl had the entire class wrapped around her little pinky, and there was nothing that Marinette could do about that. Lila had shown her what she could be. Lila had shown her that she could destroy her entire life in a day. She was manipulative as hell, and Lila had proved it. She had turned Marinette’s entire life upside down just with a few little believable lies. Then it became more than just a few.

It had been a month now.

Lila was still constantly attacking Marinette like that. In fact, it was a miracle that Marinette hadn’t been akumatised- Hawkmoth had been quiet since his first attack.

Damian… Damian _hated_ Lila with a fiery passion. And since Lila still didn’t know that he was a Wayne, Damian intended to use every figment of the Wayne name to destroy Lila. But he had one chance at it, and he wanted to spend the one chance wisely- To bring down the girl and protect his angel.

And one day, when Damian was in the toilet (Once again talking to Tikki because he needed to control himself- He couldn’t reveal himself until the time was _right_ ), a certain blonde got to Marinette. A certain blonde by the name of Adrien Agreste.

“Marinette,” He had called after her, seeing her sob after Lila made another lie about her being the one who threatened her to stay away from Adrien. Of course, everyone believed Lila. Every. Single. One. It was a miracle that Damian hadn’t murdered all his classmates yet, but he spent every extra second he had between doing his homework, his Robin patrols, his nightly balcony talks with his precious angel, and once in a while, after he’d forgiven them for sending to Paris (Because hey, he got to meet his angel, the girl he hoped to spend the rest of his life with) he’d text his father, along with Grayson- Plotting contingency plans (His father’s influence) on how to murder his classmates. And for each of them, he had a detailed summary of how to torture each of them to the very highest degree. He also had a mental list of every insult and assumption they each made that was absolutely _wrong_ that they made about his angel. And how many times she had cried because of them. Due to the fact he talked to her as Damian and Robin, he had a pretty good idea of who messed up her day. And he was keeping tally. One day, he would get his revenge. He was just being _really, really patient._

Alright. Back to Agreste.

The blonde had chased after his precious angel when he wasn’t looking. He had given her _false hope_. He’d told his angel that he believed in her (Anyone was an idiot for not doing so), and told her that he was on her side. But when she asked him if he was going to reveal Lila, he said no (What a _coward_ ).

Of course, while it wasn’t really progressing at all, it lifted up Marinette’s mood. And Damian had to admit, he was _jealous_. How dare Agreste give his angel false hope like that? How dare Agreste, who’d stayed quiet all that time, not even defending his angel, dare talk to her? Hmm?

When he got back to class, Marinette had just entered before him. And the situation was _horrible_.

“Marinette! Don’t be such a jealous bitch!” Alya had screamed at her.

“Yeah, Marinette! You’re just jealous of Lila! Because she took your seat! How petty can you be, to threaten her, and ask her to stay away from Adrien?” Adrien, at that point, had shied away from the conflict, trying to talk everyone out of it. Right. The peace-maker. The very unsuccessful peace-maker.

Damian had scowled because he had heard them from outside. Marinette stood frozen in the middle of the class, taking in all the insults they were throwing at her. His eyes widened- He recognized what she was undergoing. Another panic attack.

—

Everything was just _so loud_. Insults from every direction. Her ears couldn’t take it. Perhaps it was because of her cat senses. The ones that wore off Plagg, onto her. It had occurred to her before- Plagg was the Kwami of destruction, after all. He was also the Kwami of bad luck. Maybe the ‘bad luck’ had passed onto her. The second she fully constructed that thought, she immediately pushed it away. Without Plagg, she’d never have become Kitty Noir. She’d never have a chance to escape from her dreary, lonely (With the exception of Damian) life, onto the life of running from rooftop to rooftop, the thrill of the wind blowing past your ears… Yes, that was the only thing she lived for, now. Along with Robin, Damian, Plagg, and her parents. Those were the only things that stopped her from killing herself.

And yeah, she’d considered it before. There was a reason that she’d suddenly started wearing large sweaters instead of her old cherry-blossom shirt and the black jacket over. It was because the sleeves were long enough to cover the cut-marks on her entire arm. Plagg would stop her, every single time. But it was only a matter of time before it got too far for the Kwami to convince her to stop, right? Then it would all be over, and the pain would all be gone.

—

When Marinette was downstairs, eating with her parents, Plagg stole his chance.

He used her phone, and immediately contacted Damian. The Kwami had memorized the boy’s number on reflex- Just in case there was one day, when Marinette got too far. Just in case there was one day, he couldn’t stop her. Just in case there was one day, when he’d have to lose his most precious cat.

“Marinette?”

 _Shit_.

He couldn’t tell Damian that Marinette was Kitty, right?

He hung up. _Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit!_

But Tikki would’ve known right? Tikki would’ve seen Marinette’s phone call Damian, and his sugar cube would realize that it was him, right?

He got called back in five minutes.

“ _Plagg! Is it an emergency? Is it the angel?_ ”

“It’s my kitty, sugar.” He responded mournfully. “Your holder _has_ to do something. Whether as Robin, or as Lordbug, or as his civilian name, _I don’t care!_ He _has_ to do something! He _has_ to save her! I… I can’t afford to lose another kitty, sugar. Not after _Felix_.”

Tikki was silent. Of course. Felix… Felix was not one to mind other’s opinions, unlike Marinette, but when he eventually fell in love with Bridgette… He cared for _one_ person’s opinion. Hers. And when Bridgette died- As the previous Ladybug- Felix couldn’t take it. His one true love, the one he planned to ask out once his mess with Ladybug was finished- His one true love, was Ladybug, the girl he’d been lying to all that time. It was too much for him, and just like Marinette wanted to, he slit his wrists- Until Plagg couldn’t stop him. Until Plagg failed to convince him to live on. Felix went too far, and then there was no getting him back.

“What happened to Felix won’t happen again, Plagg. I promise you.” Tikki’s soft voice comforted him, and the cat Kwami- For the first time in _eons_ , broke down in tears.

_He couldn’t afford to lose another kitten._

—

“Damian! You have to do something!” Tikki insisted. She had been nagging him about it all night long, and honestly, although he didn’t want to admit it, he was a _coward_. What if he failed to cheer her up, with whatever he did? What if he _made things worse_?

Originally, he wasn’t planning to do anything. He was just going to keep supporting her as Damian, talk to her as Robin, and go on as usual. But it was when he saw her that he changed his mind. When he saw her slumped against her table, expressionless, face a void of expression- He almost saw himself. Just… Without the anger, the murder intent.

She’d lost all hope. Even whatever Agreste gave her didn’t last long.

“She’s heartbroken.” Damian sighed, slumping down against the toilet stall. His precious angel. What did she do to deserve that, anyway? 

“Maybe you should take her out tomorrow,” Tikki suggested. “It’s the weekend, and Master Fu only needs you to get groceries, and then you’re free for the entire weekend.” 

Damian nodded. He had known Marinette for about a month- But she was his angel now, and he would do anything to be her knight. 

—

“Marinette.” He called just as she was packing her things to leave for the day. This gained quite the reaction. It was the first actual time he’d called her by her _name,_ and not her surname. 

“Um, yes?” She said looking up, feeling nostalgia because damn, those green eyes looked _very_ familiar. 

“Do… Do you want to… Hang out for the weekend? We could discuss our homework, and then we could… Just go out and about.” He waved his hands around awkwardly as he spoke, because no, Talia did _not_ teach him how to remain composed in front of the special angel in his life. Neither did Bruce, and growing up with three other brothers who were absolutely _hopeless_ with their love lives did not help, _either_. 

She smiled at the comment, and it made his entire life suddenly worth it. She had smiled! Perhaps she was starting to feel better, and Damian swore that he would make her so happy through the weekend she’d forget all about that- _Bitch_ \- And she’d smile as brightly as she did before. 

—

“Good morning, Mr and Mrs Dupain-Cheng. I’m… Damian. Damian… Fu…?” His introduction ended with a little question. He didn’t really want anyone to know that he was a Wayne, and since Marinette had probably forgotten about his surname… Well, there was no need to tell her, either. 

“Oh, it’s so nice to meet you, Damian!” Sabine cheerily responded, and Damian immediately thought: That’s angel’s mother alright. “Marinette’s already getting ready upstairs.

In truth, Marinette didn’t want to get up. It was the weekend, and though she admitted that she felt a little guilty about not helping her parents with the bakery, she just… Couldn’t get the will to get up, to do things. 

But Plagg wouldn’t let it go. He’d nagged her until she got up, and he had tried to prep her up, commenting on what she should wear- (He had gotten a rough idea of what clothes Damian seemed to like to see Marinette wearing after getting Tikki to inquire the boy). In the end, Marinette was dressed in a cute white sweater with a smiley face- And a cute, plaited dark blue skirt. She sighed tiredly, a little reluctant to leave, but seeing Plagg get so excited about her going out did encourage her a little bit, and so she went downstairs to meet Damian. 

He had definitely made an effort. He had decked out in some casual clothes- A black sweater went over whatever shirt he was wearing under, and he had paired that up with some dark jeans and black-and-green running shoes. it was late autumn by then, and Damian had already brought a spare sweater _and_ a spare jacket for his angel inside his backpack. 

When he saw her, he immediately smiled. There was his beautiful angel, blushing, looking simply _adorable_ in her sweater. 

“Ready?” He smiled, watching as her hesitant eyes looked him up and down until they stopped at his outstretched hand. 

She took his hand. 

—

They were strolling by the riverside, her hand still in his. 

_Her hand still in his_. 

Damian was having a mental breakdown inside however much he tried to remain calm and stoic on the outside. He had no intentions of letting go of that hand, and Marinette didn’t seem to mind much, either. It was the first time since Lila came that she’d left from her house, with the exception of going to school. 

“They’re so many new shops.” She marvelled quietly, looking at the shop lots littering down the river street. 

“Don’t you want to check them out? Let’s go.” He smiled, dragging her along, Tikki- Hidden in his sweater to give emergency advice- Nodding approvingly. She blushed, nodding, letting him pull her along. 

—

“What boat is that?” Marinette had murmured, staring at a very-out-of-place ship resting in the harbour. “It looks… Very artistic.” She commented amusedly, smiling to herself. 

“Want to check it out?” Damian hummed, already pulling her in the direction. Today, he thought, he would bring her anywhere she wanted to go, let her see everything she wanted to see. 

“It’s so pretty.” Marinette breathed, staring at the ship dressed in fairy lights, decorated in the most explicit way there was. “Do you think we can go down?” She asked, turning to him, her bluebell eyes shining in excitement. 

_Of course it’d be impossible to say no to his angel_. 

“Hey, who are you?” 

When Damian turned around, he bristled like a cat. A boy with dyed turquoise hair was pointing suspiciously at them, and Damian had a large urge to snap ‘Do you know who I am?’, but he decided against it. 

“I’m Damian Fu, and this is Marinette Dupain-Cheng.” He said neutrally, realising in his mind that if the boy was heading into the harbour, there was a high chance he could get the two of them onto the ship. 

“Luka, who’s that?” A girl with a hair colour similar to Marinette’s came over, her face as neutrally cold as Damian’s. 

“This is Damian and… Was it Marinette?” Luka smiled at the dark-haired girl behind Damian, watching as she responded with a shy nod and smile. Damian immediately hissed again, only stopping himself when Luka gave him a strange look. “Well, I’m Luka Couffaine, and this is Kagami Tsurugi.” 

“Right.” Damian cleared his throat. “We were wondering if we could take a look around the ship?” 

Luka shrugged. “Sure. I mean, I could take you onboard. Come on.” 

—

The moment Kagami set her eyes on Marinette, she felt the urge to protect her. Marinette was small, and shy, but Kagami knew there was a lot of energy trapped underneath deep within. She just knew. 

“And this is Luka’s room. He shares it with his sister.” Kagami told her, watching as the girl admired the turquoise boy’s pick collection. Chuckling as Marinette looked over each one, Kagami smiled. “Yeah, he really treasures all his picks. Once, when he brought me in here, he told me the stories of how he got everyone of those picks.” 

“Wow.” Marinette awwed. “He sounds like a great guy.” 

Kagami sighed dreamily. “Yeah, he is.” 

—

While Kagami was busy taking Marinette on a tour of the ship, Luka pulled Damian aside. “Is she… Okay?” Luka struggled with his words. When he looked into her eyes, he could see the hurt, and wariness inside them when he first saw her on the harbour. “There’s this something in her eyes, like-” 

“I know.” Damian cut him off, his own eyes sorrowful. “It’s why I’m taking her out today. In hopes she’ll cheer up.” 

Luka nodded in understanding. “She looks like she needs friends.” At this, Damian immediately understood what the boy was hinting at. Feeling threatened, Damian hissed again, but not before Luka raised his hands in surrender. “Whoa. Chill out, man. I like another girl. No one’s touching your girlfriend.” 

Damian calmed down slightly, still feeling tense. “She’s not my girlfriend. She’s just a friend.” 

Pause. 

“ _For now_.” 

“So… She’s not your girlfriend?” Luka asked in disbelief. 

Damian smirked, eyes alight. “ _Yet_.” 

—

“Oh, I’ve heard about you.” Kagami suddenly remembered as they were sipping on some ice chocolate on the ship deck. “Adrien’s mentioned you before.” 

Damian immediately tensed up on the name, but not only he tensed up. So did Luka. 

“You know Adrien?” Marinette asked softly, her head tilted slightly in curiosity. 

“He’s in my fencing class.” Kagami explained, then lowering her voice so that the boys wouldn’t hear. “He’s pretty cute… I have a crush on him.” Damian had heard it despite the low volume that the girl spoke in, and he knew Luka heard it too. A flash of heartache passed through Luka's features briefly before he hid it away, buried under wanting the best for his fencer friend. Luka liked Kagami… But Kagami liked Adrien. 

—

“Thanks a lot for today!” Marinette beamed, having regained a little of her energy, hopping a little. 

“Please come back soon!” Luka grinned, waving. 

“See you, Luka.” Kagami smiled at the boy. “I’ve got to get home before my mom kills me.” 

“See you, Kagami!” Luka waved, a blush climbing up his cheeks. 

On the way home, Damian could feel like that the day had been worth it. Taking her hand into his abruptly, he ignored her stare on him, and only held her hand tighter. 

“Damian?” 

He hummed in reply. 

“Thanks for today.” She blushed, fiddling with the end of her sweater with her other hand. “It was really nice of you to do so,” She continued. Taking a deep breath, she smiled at him. “You’re a really nice friend, Damian. I’m so lucky to have you.” 

—

_Right. So Marinette didn’t like Damian, but she liked Robin._

Those were the thoughts running through Robin’s head as he scampered through the city in his familiar route to his angel’s balcony. 

He smiled, pleased when he saw her, cuddled up against the balcony, waiting ever so patiently for him. 

“Angel?” He queried softly, dropping in front of her. Noticing her smile, he couldn’t help but ask: “What’s got you looking so happy today, hmm?” 

She blushed. “My friend took me out today, and I made new friends!” She told him excitedly. 

“Oh, really?” 

—

She was so much happier the day after. It showed. She was smiling, constantly giggling to herself, even when she took her seat next to him. 

“Well, you look happy.” Damian smiled, taking out his books. 

She giggled, like she had a little secret in her heart. “You want to know why?” 

He nodded. 

“A little robin came to visit me, that’s why.” She mused, blushing to herself and giggling again. 

That’s when it hit him. 

_Holy shit, he was truly in love with her._

—

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, thank you for reading and leave a comment to tell me what you think! :)
> 
> Also not me re-reading this part and realising how OOC Kagami and Luka are...


	6. In Which Marinette Befriends Her Ex-Bully

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TRIGGER WARNING: Self-harm, suicidal attempts, do NOT read if you're not comfortable with it :)

—

“Alright class, settle down!” The teacher yelled, a scowl worn on her thin lips. “Today we’ll be doing your first assessment- A group project. I have already decided your groups, and they will be as followed- Rose and Juleka, Alya and Lila, …” The teacher droned on, and Marinette blanked out, only listening for her name, hoping that she’d be paired with Damian. “… Damian and Adrien, Marinette and Chloe. That’s it. Now get to work!” She snapped, banging her papers on the desk loudly. 

Damian turned to Agreste with a grim smile. Great. His enemy. _Perfect_. 

“Good luck, angel.” He murmured to her, moving over to Agreste’s desk. He hoped she didn’t notice, but when he passed her, his fingers had accidentally trailed past hers, and now his cheeks were burning. 

Well, she noticed. But it wasn’t really the top of her lists of things to deal with. 

Chloe grudgingly moved up, sitting where Damian had been a few moments ago. Marinette cleared her throat awkwardly, drawing out a piece of paper. “So… Um, do you have any ideas for the project?” She asked meekly. 

“Look, Dupain-Cheng, I’m… Sorry.” Chloe snapped. “I… Didn’t realize that bullying was that bad, and having experienced it with Rossi, I… I’m sorry.” 

Marinette smiled softly. “It’s okay. We’re both Lila’s victims… Truce?” She smiled, extending her hand. Chloe’s eyes narrowed, catching a trace of some pale pink lines underneath the sweater sleeve, but she didn’t say anything and only shook her hand. 

“This doesn’t mean we’re friends, Dupain-Cheng.” Chloe proclaimed. “Just allies.” 

Marinette giggled a little at it. Who knew? Chloe reminded her of Plagg- Both really just soft kitties on the inside, just a little rough on the outside. “Alright, Chloe.” 

Across the room, Damian had been glaring at Chloe. He had figured out some time ago that Chloe used to bully his precious angel… And he _did not_ trust Chloe _at all_. His glare, if translated into words, would spell: _If you hurt my angel, I will end you_. 

Chloe coughed awkwardly. 

“Dupain-Cheng, could you _please_ ask your… Boyfriend to stop glaring?” 

Marinette giggled. “He’s not my boyfriend… And Damian’s just like that. You’ll like him once you get to know him.” 

Chloe seemed to doubt this. “Right.” 

—

“Um… Why are you following me, Chloe?” Marinette asked, curious as to why the blonde had insisted in following her the moment she stepped out of the classroom to get home. 

“You need to do something about your clothes.” Chloe rolled her eyes. “You need a new style, and who better to ask than me?” She flipped her hair, flaring her ‘gorgeousness’. 

Marinette laughed. “Of course, Chloe.”

A cough interrupted the two girls. “If you don’t mind, Bourgeois, I can walk Marinette home.” 

The said girl blushed. _There. That was the second time- That she could remember, anyway, he called her name_. 

“Nuh-uh.” Chloe refused. “She’s going home in _my limo_. Shoo. Go away. It’s girl time, boy.” 

And that was how Chloe left Damian speechless, standing alone as Chloe dragged a giggling Marinette on to the car. Shaking his head, he figured that more friends would do his angel well- Although that still didn’t mean that he liked that the mayor’s daughter was taking his angel for him, he supposed it was for the better. 

—

“Alright. We need to do something about… This.” Chloe huffed, pointing at all of Marinette. 

“But you just pointed at all of me.” (Httyd anyone?) Marinette sighed. 

“Exactly. Now take off that sweater and let’s see what other clothes you have.” Chloe instructed, already beginning to go through her closet. 

_No. If I take off my sweater, she’ll see my-_

“Take it off. Don’t worry, I won’t stare. Quite sure that there isn’t anything to stare at, anyway.” Chloe mused, urging the other girl to take off the sweater. 

“No!” Marinette refused. _She can’t see my scars-_

“What is this?” Chloe breathed, looking at the pale lines that revealed themselves when the sweater sleeve pulled up a little. The girl immediately pulled the sleeves back down defensively, but Chloe Bourgeouis wouldn’t take a no for an answer. She forced the sweater off Marinette, gasping at all the red lines on her arms- Some fresher than the rest- Recent marks. 

“M-Marinette…” Chloe faltered, beginning to reach over to trail her fingers over the marks. When Marinette retracted, she angrily reached out, grabbing the dark-haired girl’s hand forcefully. “Do your parents know about this?” She demanded. 

The girl shook her head feverishly, trying to yank her arm from Chloe’s grip, but since she’d been eating less and less, she wasn’t in any state to fight against the well-nourished daughter of the mayor. 

Chloe shook her head in shock. “Where are… Your knives? Tell me where they are.” 

After the blonde insisted fiercely for a few more times, Marinette revealed a drawer in which a few small kitchen knives lay hidden, wrapped with felt. Without a pause, Chloe reached out for them, shoving them into her bag. “I’m taking these from you.” She told Marinette sternly. “And from now on, every day, I _will_ check your arms. If I see any new marks, I’ll tell your parents about this. You don’t want them to worry, right?” Chloe indeed knew Marinette well- She would never want to bother her parents with such a matter. “Then don’t do it.” 

She nodded. “Sorry.” She murmured softly, looking guilty. 

Chloe snarled. “What are you sorry for? Be sorry for yourself! This is pathetic. Don’t hurt yourself! You’re important, whether you believe it or not! You’ve organized so many things last year. Where’s our old class president? The independent, confident Marinette? That’s you.” Chloe pointed right at the other girl. “This- This isn’t you. You used to fight back when I bullied you. It’s the same thing with Lila. You fight back.” Seeing the girl shivering, Chloe softened, taking the girl’s hands into her own. “You aren’t alone.” 

Marinette sniffled a little, nodding. “Thank you, Chloe.” 

The blonde huffed. “Now. We need to do something about your outlook. Drop the pigtails. We’ve got to make you look more _confident_. If you look confident, you _will be_ confident.” 

“AKUMA!” A shrill scream from outside interrupted the two girls’ moment.

“I- Chloe, can I ask a favor?” Marinette murmured, her eyes pleading. “Please, please, _please_ , go out there as Kitty Noir for me. I _can’t_.” 

The blonde took a few seconds to process this. “You’re- Oh god, you’re Kitty Noir.” 

The cat Kwami immediately protested. “Marinette! You can’t do that! You’re the only _true cat_!” 

“Oh god.” Chloe was panicking now. No. She had to help. “Paris needs you, Mari. Get out there and kick some akuma butt.” She told her sternly.

“I can’t.” Marinette whimpered. “Paris deserves better.” 

“I chose you for a reason! And I _never_ make the wrong choice!” Plagg hissed. “So get out there. Say it, Marinette.” 

“Plagg… Claws out.” 

—

Moments after she transformed, she detransformed. “I can’t do this.” She sobbed. 

“Maybe- Maybe we could get another miraculous,” Plagg suggested, eyes lighting up. “Come on, Mari. Robin and Lordbug are waiting!” 

“Alright…” She sighed reluctantly. “Where do we get a miraculous, Plagg?” 

“Fu’s place.”

—

When Kitty Noir and Chloe landed outside of Fu’s massage shop, Robin had already gotten ready and was jumping out of Damian’s bedroom. If he had been a second earlier, Kitty would’ve caught him coming out of Damian’s room- Which would’ve revealed his identity. 

“You’re asking for this miraculous because?” Master Fu asked, raising an eyebrow. 

“I… I can’t do it alone.” Marinette’s voice cracked. “I’m not deserving to be the black cat, sir. Please take the ring back.” 

“Plagg has made his choice.” Master Fu answered, smiling in knowingness. “Besides, Robin needs you.” Realizing the mistake he made, he coughed and immediately tried to correct it. “And so does Lordbug.” Turning to Chloe, he scrutinized her a second before picking out the bee miraculous. “This is the bee miraculous. Secure it with your life.” 

“Understood.” 

“Now go out there and kick that akuma ass.” 

—

“This is Queen Bee.” Kitty introduced, jumping in to block a blow from the akuma- An ex-classmate of Lila’s, who’d shown up in Paris for a vacation- But had accidentally found Lila, and in wanting revenge for what Lila did, gave into Hawkmoth’s orders. Don’t ask Robin how he knew that. He’s Robin. He just knows. 

“Right. Help out, yea?” Robin grunted, kicking away another flying object that the akuma flung at him. 

“I want revenge from Lila Rossi! Where are you, huh, you lying bitch?” The akuma roared. 

“Woah.” Queen Bee muttered under her breath. “Guess we aren’t her only victims.” 

A look of warning from Kitty reminded the girl to protect their identities. And honestly, if Robin had been paying attention, he’d have immediately guessed their identities. 

“Kitty, Bee, go find Lila Rossi! I have a plan.” Robin growled, leaping away from a crashing car. 

The two superheroes nodded, running off. 

“I think he wants to use her as bait,” Kitty said, panting a little as they sprinted over the rooftops, Queen Bee still trying to get used to her powers. 

“Well, I hope she gets killed in the process,” Bee muttered off-handedly under her breath, making Kitty laugh. 

“Let’s not get our hopes up.” Kitty grinned, jumping off a building to where the girl had been spotted. 

—

“Kitty Noir!” Lila gushed over the superhero, beaming. Kitty only stepped back from the girl before Queen Bee pushed her forward. 

“We need your help.” Queen Bee smiled forcedly. “Come with us.” 

—

Lila was placed on the tip of the building, in the perfect view of the flying akuma. 

“I really hope she gets hit.” Queen Bee sighed, crossing her fingers. 

“Honestly, same.” Robin sympathized. “She keeps hurting my angel.” 

Queen Bee raised an eyebrow, smirking. “Your angel?” 

Robin glared at her. “Marinette.” He sighed. “She’s perfect.” 

Queen Bee nearly hooted before nudging Kitty Noir, who only blushed and stepped on her foot with force, earning a shriek out of the yellow superhero. 

“Quiet!” Robin hissed, glaring daggers at Queen Bee, who only huffed, annoyed. “The akuma’s coming, take cover.” He instructed. 

“Lila! Oh, we meet again, _old friend_.” The akuma cackled, tracing a finger creepily down Lila’s shoulder. “I’m going to make you vomit all those lies you omitted!” 

Glancing over the ledge, the three superheroes watched as the akuma laced lines to Lila- Lines that were attached to a controller. Lila had become a _puppet_. 

“Holy shit.” Robin breathed, watching the thing unfold. “That’s some badass villain shit we got. Alright. Here’s the plan.” 

The two turned to him. 

“Okay, we don’t have a plan.” 

—

“I lied to Sancha and Molly. I said that you didn’t want to join them.” Lila confessed, choking as the akuma continued to cackle, pulling on the strings. Alya, nearby, waiting for the superheroes, looked on, horrified. “I lied. It wasn’t Marinette who threatened me. I threatened Marinette. I told Chloe if she didn’t chase Sabrina from herself, I would.” Lila continued to choke as a smoke substance left her throat, each lie she confessed getting darker and darker. 

“Marinette was innocent. So was Chloe. So was Lily, Freya, Angelina, Pomeline-” The girl continued to spout the names of the people she’d destroyed. 

“I think we know who the true villain is, here.” The akuma spat, jerking on a line that made Lila slap herself. 

“But that doesn’t mean you have to hurt the villain.” Kitty Noir spoke up before Queen Bee or Robin could stop her. 

“Hmp! As if you understand.” The akuma harrumphed. 

“I’ve been bullied before. I know how it feels. Everyone turning against you, you’re alone. There’s no way out.” Kitty Noir continued, slowly stepping towards the akuma. “It doesn’t mean they’re right, but it doesn’t mean you need revenge. It makes you the same as them. It makes you the very person you didn’t want to become.” 

“She destroyed my life. My friends all _left me_.” The akuma hissed, black tears falling down to the earth like stained rain. 

“So did mine.” Her voice was quiet. 

The akuma stared at her in stunned silence. 

_Take her miraculous!_

“Hawkmoth.” Kitty began. “He’s a bully, too.”

“You said you were bullied.” The akuma sniffled. “What did you do? You said we shouldn’t take revenge. Then do we just stay quiet?” 

“No, because your feelings matter, too.” Queen Bee interrupted, standing up. “I’ve been a bully before. I didn’t know, and for that, I apologise.” Kitty could hear the truly sincere apology right there. “You don’t stay quiet. You fight back.” 

Kitty shot Bee a smile, taking her hand. “So, please. Hawkmoth _is_ a bully. Give us your hand.” 

The akuma slowly landed, Lila limp in her hands. Her fingers reached out, but before she could take Kitty’s extended hand, Hawkmoth’s voice grew louder. 

_Don’t listen to them! They’ll only lie to you, the way Lila did!_

_“_ Take my hand.” 

She did. 

—

Never in his life had Robin been that impressed. He had never seen anyone convince a villain out of, well, villainy. His whole life he’d been taught to fight and that was it. He’d never been taught to _talk_ , to give _chances_. And for that, he respected Kitty, Bee, and most of all, his angel. 

—

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! The versions that I'm posting up here are smoother than the chapters on Tumblr because I've read through these pretty quickly and fixed some plot holes. Leave a comment to tell me what you think! :)


	7. In Which Damian Is Puzzled

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cross-posted from my tumblr (@/cadenceh2o). A big GIANT thank you to @MentallyUnstableSpoon and @tbehartoo for calling my dumb ass out for not putting warnings. Thank you two so much! Feel free to call me out whenever I do something wrong because hi yes Cady is an idiot.

—

“Master Fu, what do we do about Dupain-Cheng?” He could hear Wayzz speak from his position mid-way down the stairs. The name triggered a mechanism in him, and he stooped to listen more to the conversation. 

“We can only hope that Marinette will pick herself up.” Master Fu sighed. “He chose her, after all. He must have a reason for his choice… We can only wait and hope that she fulfils her role.” 

Damian paused, puzzled. Who was Fu talking about? Him? He chose Marinette? He blushed at the thought. Well, he did choose Marinette to be his precious angel… But there was no way Fu could know that, right? 

—

“This is stupid.” Damian told the Kwami frankly, standing in front of the Dupain-Cheng bakery, his school bag in hand. 

“It isn’t!” Tikki protested. “You’re showing her you care about her.” 

Damian rolled his eyes, feeling awfully anxious. Would Marinette think he was being overbearing if he came to walk her to school? She wouldn’t… Right?

“I can’t believe I’m doing this.” He muttered under his breath, sending a fierce glare towards the creation Kwami, who only shrugged in response. 

“Damian?” The noirnette’s voice greeted him as she stepped out of the bakery. She’d seen him from her balcony after Plagg informed her of his presence- (Which he’d detected because he could feel Tikki, of course), and she’d rushed down to meet him after swallowing a hasty breakfast. 

“Morning.” Damian greeted coolly, tucking his hands into his jeans. “You’re early.” He commented, resisting a smile as she blushed, embarrassed. 

“Shut up.” She punched him in the shoulder playfully, scowling at him as he laughed and raised his hands in surrender. 

“Sorry!” He apologised, chasing after her as she ran off, giggling. 

—

“Marinette! Can I talk to you?” Alya called, rushing over with a frown on her face. Instinctively, Damian growled, but then cleared his throat as the two girls shot him a weird glance. 

When Damian made no move to leave Marinette’s side and only swiped out his phone to scroll through some news, Alya cleared her throat. “In _private_?” 

Damian harrumphed coldly. “That’s very rude, Cesaire.” 

“Damian, please?” Marinette murmured under her breath, grasping his arm in her thin fingers. Upon this, with large hesitation, Damian moved away to a distance beyond hearing range (But who are we kidding, Damian planted a hearing device on her shirt). Taking a deep breath, Marinette forced a smile at Alya. “Yes, Alya?” 

“Girl, you need to be more kind towards Lila.” Alya criticised, noticing the girl flinch at the name. “Now you’re just hanging around that… Boy! And he’s such a bad influence on you, not to mention that now you’re friends with _Chloe_? Seriously? You knew what she did to Sabrina.” 

“Lila forced her to chase Sabrina away.” Marinette said quietly, looking down at the floor. Across the corridor, Damian looked up with a startled glance. _How did Marinette know that? Lila confessed it only in front of the Akuma, Kitty, and Bee. According to Fu, the Akuma would remember nothing from the akumasisation… So perhaps Kitty told Marinette about it? Or maybe Bee?_

“W-What?” Alya stuttered. “Did Chloe say that? How could you believe Chloe, Mari?” 

Marinette sighed softly. “Don’t call me Mari.” 

“Marinette!” Alya groaned, shaking the girl by the shoulders as the said girl stood limply in her arms, her face void of emotion- She was inert, as if she’d been hurt enough to be far too gone in her own mind. 

“She’s been lying this whole time, Alya.” Marinette continued softly, still not meeting the other girl’s eyes. “She’s lied to you, to everyone in the class. Tell me, in the first week that Dami was here, did she praise him? And when he refused to be her friend, when he dismissed her lies, did she start spreading bad rumours about him?” 

Alya faltered at this. 

“Cesaire! What are you doing?” Chloe screeched angrily, wrenching Alya’s arms off Marinette’s shoulders. “Don’t touch Mari.” She hissed. 

“So now you get to call her Mari?” Alya shot back, furious. 

Chloe scoffed. “Because I’m her _friend_. You lost that title the moment you chose a stranger over your best friend. Your loss.” 

Not far away, Lila watched this interaction, furious. 

_Lila Rossi, I am Hawkmoth._

—

“Alya!” Lila greeted cheerily, reaching over to hug her friend, but Alya only hesitatingly turned away. 

_Ahh. The blue-haired girl’s words are still in her mind._

Lila squeezed her eyes shut. “What do you want me to do, Hawkmoth?” 

_Give yourself a reason to be akumatised._

“Alya? What’s wrong?” Lila asked innocently, her expression pained. 

Alya forced a laugh. “Sorry, Lila, I’m just a bit… Distracted.” 

“Did Marinette say something bad about me?” Lila whimpered. “I don’t know why she hates me so much…” 

Alya hesitated. “Um, I need to think about things for a while, Lila. I’m sorry.” 

Before Alya could leave the classroom, however, Marinette- Followed by Damian- Followed by Chloe- Entered. 

“Marinette! Why do you hate me so much?” Lila whimpered, tears already surfacing. 

“Let me handle this-” Chloe hissed, already stepping up and getting ready to slap some bitches, but before she could do so, Marinette and Damian both simultaneously grabbed her arm and shook their heads. 

“Don’t cause an akuma.” Marinette told her softly. Turning to Lila, she sighed tiredly, all the bright energy she had from the morning dissipating. “I don’t hate you, Lila.” 

“But I do.” Damian growled under his breath as Marinette walked to her seat. Unfortunately for the class, Lila heard the comment. Breaking out into tears, she ran from the room. 

_Welcome, Volpina._

_—_

“Akuma!” Rose cried out weakly, panting as she ran into the room. “She’s after Marinette!” 

_“I’m not that weak!”_ Akuma Lie-La roared, bursting into the room. _"Marinette, I won’t let you destroy me like this! You deserved **everything**!" _

Damian scoffed. "She didn’t.” 

Using Damian as a distraction, Chloe winked suggestively at Marinette, and the two darted off to transform. Once Lila figured that the two were gone, she screeched in rage, flying off to chase them, and Damian ran in the opposite direction to change into Robin. 

—

 _"You deserved **everything**_. _"_

As in, she deserved everything that Lila did to her. 

The one phrase stuck in his head. It played over and over like a broken record, adding more fuel into the fire raging inside Damian’s head. If he disliked Lila before, then his current feeling towards her would be an even more concentrated _loath_. He clenched his fist, hastily putting on his green, spiky gloves. The mask was the final touch. 

"You must avenge her, but be careful of your emotions,” Tikki warned, hiding herself inside his hood. 

"Oh, I’ll avenge my angel alright,” Robin smirked. _She would get what she deserved_. 

—

"Oh my god, are you guys okay?” Lila burst into the classroom, any signs of her being akumatised completely _gone_. 

“L-Lila?” Adrien stuttered. _How…?_

“Oh, the Akuma isn’t me.” Lila dismissed. “It’s another one of Marinette’s _victims_.”

The class sighed in relief, grateful that their _beloved friend_ was alright.

_BANG!_

_"Where is Marinette Dupain-Cheng?”_ The Akuma roared, glaring at all the cowering students in the class. 

“There you are.” A leather-dressed girl called out in a sing-song, smiling brightly, standing in front of the doorway behind the Akuma. “C'mere, _darling_.” (Note: Kitty is originally speaking in French, but then says 'darling’ in English)

The Akuma didn’t move, and Kitty narrowed her eyes, because something wasn’t right. 

“Why is _Lila_ here, too?” Queen Bee murmured to Kitty.

“No idea, but she doesn’t look scared at all. She looks more… Annoyed." 

The Akuma roared. Charging towards the two superheroes, the class watched with bated breath. 

"Get the Akuma out of the school first!” Kitty instructed, swinging her baton to hit the Akuma, but instead of making contact with the Akuma, the Akuma flickered and glitched, appearing a few meters away. 

"What the fuck?” Bee cursed under her breath, her transparent wings coming to life as she chased after the flying Akuma. Watching her friend soar away, Kitty turned around to see a triumphant Lila, which disturbed her greatly. Was she missing something? 

_Why didn’t you chase after the miraculous?!_

“Don’t worry, Hawkmoth. I have a _plan_.” Lila turned to her classmates, feinting a relieved sigh. “Oh my god, that was so _scary_!" 

—

"It- It just disappeared!” Bee waved her hands around and stomped her foot as she tried to explain to Robin and Kitty about how the Akuma disappeared as soon as she was off school grounds.

Robin raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms. “Right. Then we better get back to school grounds. The Akuma might’ve gone back in.”

—

The students screeched as the same Akuma entered the classroom again. 

“The superheroes are _useless_! They’ve run away!” The Akuma growled angrily, eyeing the classroom thoroughly. “What about… A hostage?” Reaching for Adrien, the Akuma picked him up, grinning widely as the boy growled stubbornly at the Akuma. 

“No! Let go of Adrien!” Lila yelled ‘bravely’, stepping forward. “Don’t worry, Adrien. I’ll save you!” 

_What are you doing?_

The Akuma stepped back, seemingly afraid of Lila, and as Lila glared even more at the Akuma, it started to set Adrien down, but not before Kitty kicked down the door, glaring even fiercer at it, swinging her long baton in the Akuma’s face. This time, she made contact, and as the Akuma screeched and fell to the floor, Lila, too, flinched and held the side of her face while Kitty helped Adrien up before continuing her attack. 

Each blow seemed to hurt Lila, too. She knew that if she didn’t get out, she’d be revealed sooner or later. So, the Akuma picked her up, and with a dramatic screech, she got ‘kidnapped’. 

“I am very tempted to let the Akuma just run off with the sunset with her.” Bee commented dryly, sighing as the three superheroes continued to chase. 

Robin glared dead-hard where the Akuma was in front of them and didn’t say anything.

—

“We’ve got you cornered now,” Robin growled, a few Batarangs already in hand. Throwing a few Batarangs at the Akuma, he watched as Lila yelped in pain for a few times before he yanked her over, snatching out her hairpin and tossing it to Kitty, who in turn cataclysmed it. A butterfly emerged, and Bee used her venom powers to sting the butterfly, then handing the stiff insect to Robin, who pocketed it with a promise to pass it to Lordbug. 

“Don’t do such a thing again.” Robin growled at Lila, glaring venomously at her. “It’s childish how you keep maiming your classmates. In under _two days_ there were _two_ akumas involving you. He pointed at the ‘Akuma’ who was currently dissolving since Lila’s powers were gone. “Don’t let it happen again.” Nodding in thanks at Kitty and Bee, he shot off, leaving the three girls.

Kitty stepped forward hesitatingly towards Lila, offering a hand to help the girl get up while Bee only watched in disgust. “Are you okay?” She smiled softly, watching as Lila beamed at her. 

“Oh my gosh, thank you so much! Can I take a photo with you? Say cheese!” Without a pause, the girl had taken a selfie with the superhero and had darted off after hollering thanks. 

Bee watched the girl dart away with a loathsome expression. "I _hate_ her so much, I swear. I'm clearly the better looking one, no offence." She added. "She should've asked for a picture from me, too!" 

Kitty laughed, blue eyes twinkling in amusement. "Alright, alright, let's go before we de-transform." 

—

“Alya! Look at this picture I took with Kitty after she saved me! She says we’re _besties_ now.” Lila gushed as the rest of the class- With the exception of Adrien, Chloe, Damian, and Marinette- Admired the photo. 

Marinette rolled her eyes, scoffing as Lila continued to boast about what happened in exaggerated scenes. Damian… Damian just _glared_ , and Chloe just scrolled through her phone, ignoring all the noise behind. 

Wait. 

Damian frowned, eyeing Marinette- Who was watching Lila show off with a bitter smile- And Chloe, who kept turning around to check on Marinette, then changing her line of view to Lila. 

_Something was up._

_Wait…_

_Was Marinette… Kitty?_

—

“Hey.” Robin greeted as Kitty climbed up the roof, settling down next to him. “Today was pretty hectic, huh?” He tried to catch any signs of his angel, watching her every move. 

She nodded. “Yeah.” Sighing, she brushed her hands through her pigtails, sorting out a few tangles. 

Without warning, Robin pulled off the green ribbons that held her pigtails in place, earning a cute yelp from her. Brushing through a few ruffles in her hair, he smiled. “There. Better.”

Kitty smirked. “Are you trying to flirt with me, bird?” Moving forward, she slammed her hands on either side of him, making his eyes widen as he internally panicked. “Because that was a _paw-_ sitively _purr-_ fect attempt.” She purred. 

Robin pushed her away, grinning. “Not today, Kitty.” 

The girl only pouted childishly. “C’mon, stay here with me, be my _purr-_ rince.” 

He patted her gently on the head. “I’ve got to find my angel. Maybe tomorrow, Kitty.” 

—

 _Marinette would never make cat puns like that, right?_ Damian asked himself, running towards his angel’s house. _No, she wouldn’t._

_—_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Leave a comment and tell me what you think! :3


	8. In Which A Lot Of Things Happen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Mentions of self-harm. Do NOT read if you're uncomfortable with it. Thank you! :)

—

“Morning, Damian!” Marinette waved brightly. “I brought you a macaron.” She handed him a paper bag, which he supposed had the said macaron inside it. 

“Thank you.” He nodded at her, his sling bag around his shoulder as Tikki peered out of his hood. He hissed, tugging at his hood, ushering the Kwami to stay out of sight. Tikki dove into his bag in a huff, pouting. 

“Is there something stuck in your hood?” Marinette peered over his shoulder as he coughed awkwardly. 

Damian cleared his throat. “Yeah, a bee. It’s gone now.” 

Marinette nodded. “Oh, okay.” She shot him a sweet smile. “Shall we?” 

He glanced up at the steps leading into the school, turning to look at the girl beside him. “Another day to deal with Rossi.” He mumbled under his breath. 

Marinette rolled her eyes. “Come on, Damian. Let’s go.” 

—

“Mari!” Chloe, who had bonded _tons_ with the bluenette after the akuma incident (They’d sat together during lunch, too) beamed as she bounded up towards Marinette’s seat, slamming her hand on the bluenette’s desk. “Guess what?” 

Marinette, who’d warmed up with the blonde, raised an eyebrow with an amused grin. “What?” 

“I’ve got news. Do you want to hear the good news, or the better news first?” Chloe grinned. 

Marinette pretended to deeply consider her options. “Um, good news first.” 

“First of all, my mom wants you to participate in one of her fashion shows. You’re allowed to bring a few of your own designs.” Chloe told the girl with a grin, waiting for the bluenette’s excited reaction, and she was _not_ disappointed. 

Marinette’s eyes gleamed in excitement. “Really? That’s- That’s so amazing! Thank you so much, Chloe!”

Chloe waved it off like it was nothing. “You deserve it, ‘nette. Now, for the better news. Guess who’s coming to Paris!” Chloe squealed. 

Damian rolled his eyes at Chloe’s excitement. “Maybe keep it down, Bourgeois? This is a _classroom_.” 

The blonde scowled at Damian’s remark. “Oh, _shut up_ , Fu, and let me finish. Who invited you into the conversation, anyway? Quiet.” Chloe turned away from the green-eyed boy towards a Marinette who was stifling her laughter. “Alright, guess who?” 

Marinette tapped her finger on her lips, humming thoughtfully. “Um… The king of... America?" 

Damian raised an eyebrow tentatively. "America doesn't have a king. We have presidents." 

"Oops." The bluenette laughed. "Alright, Chloe, spit it out." 

"My mother met up with… A special someone in Gotham,” Chloe lowered her voice, a glint shining in her blue eyes as she announced the news boastfully, “And that someone wants to see your designs. My mom’s showed,” The blonde looked around, but no one was paying any attention to them, “ _Bruce Wayne_ your designs.” 

Marinette looked like she was ready to combust from sheer excitement. “Oh. My. God. Really?” Marinette beamed. “Oh, thank you, thank you, _thank you_!” 

“Apparently, once he heard your name, he demanded to see you. He’s booked a flight for tomorrow.” Chloe grinned. “I’m so proud! You’re going to be _famous_ , Mari!” 

Damian was about to strangle his father. Dick must’ve mentioned his angel’s name to his father, and the moment Bruce caught sound of her name, he’d demanded to see her. _Typical_. 

Chloe turned to glare at Damian. “You’re proud of her, aren’t you?” 

Damian rolled his eyes, but mustered up a little smile. Marinette looked so _hopeful_ , and there was that beautiful, _beautiful_ light in her eyes- “Of course.” He scoffed. “Good job, Mari.” He smiled, green-eyes twinkling in approval. 

Marinette blushed. “I’ll have to see him tomorrow, then. The both of you have _got_ to come with me.” 

Chloe nodded her head vigorously. “Duh, _obviously_ I’m coming with you. He’s going to be around to see the fashion show, so you _definitely_ need to get some people to model some of your designs. Think you got enough time?” 

Marinette bit her lip, slowly nodding. “The two of you would be _perfect_!” She exclaimed. Damian blinked in confusion. Surely she didn’t mean… 

“Oi, I didn’t agree to anything.” Damian defended himself. “I’m _not_ modelling.” 

Marinette pouted. “But you would do such a good job at it! Besides, remember I gave you the clothes I made when you got soaked? You owe me one for that. Please, Damian?” 

Chloe smirked. “Oh yeah. I had my driver drive close so you’d get sprayed.” If glares could kill, Chloe would’ve evaporated on the spot due to the sheer _acidity_ of Damian's scowl. 

“Fine.” Damian sighed. “I’ll do it. But after this, I don’t owe you.” He gave a pointed look at the bluenette, who was too excited to notice. 

“The two of you come to the bakery after school.” Marinette grinned. “I have _so_ many ideas! We’ve got to finish it before tomorrow, so-”

“ _Akuma!_ ” 

All three teens simultaneously groaned. 

“Come on.” Chloe grumbled. “Not again.” 

“The two of you get to safety.” Damian instructed just as Ms. Bustier entered the classroom for first period, ushering the students out of the classroom, following akuma procedure. “I think… Um, Adrien went to the toilet just now. I’ll go get him.” 

Chloe and Marinette both nodded, hurrying off in the chaos to the girl’s toilet. 

—

“ _What_ is it this time?” Robin squinted at the akuma. “Is that a…” He blinked. “Is that a giant flock of _pigeons_?” 

Queen Bee rolled her eyes. “Your time has come, bird-boy! It’s your, uh, cousins, the pigeons.” Robin glared at the yellow-dressed superhero. 

“Alright, girls, you’re both pretty.” Kitty groaned. “How exactly do we defeat a giant flock of angry pigeons?” 

Robin sighed. “I have an idea.” 

—

“What happened?” Mr. Ramier rubbed his head, confused on a lawn outside a building. 

“You were akumatised.” Kitty explained with a soft smile, reaching out a hand to help him get up. “But everything’s okay now.” 

He nodded as he patted himself down, still confused. “Are- Are my pigeons okay?” 

Robin interrupted. “Yes, yes they are.” He flicked a white spot off his uniform- One of the many pieces of pigeon faeces that landed on him. “They are fine, but I need to make a quick visit to the self-service laundry.” He glanced at the two girls giggling beside him. “ _Please_ tell me Paris has self-service laundries.” 

—

“You smell utterly horrible.” Chloe pointed out bluntly as the three sat down for lunch. 

Damian rolled his eyes. “Shut up, Bourgeois. I got caught in the akuma.” 

“If Lordbug showed up then his miraculous cure would’ve fixed it.” Marinette said thoughtfully. “Pity, he never shows up anymore.” 

Damian coughed, setting down his fork. “Excuse me for one moment.” As he walked away, he cursed. “ _Why didn’t I think of that_?” 

Chloe tilted her head as Damian walked away. “Is it a coincidence, or…?” 

“Hmm?” Marinette swallowed. “Sorry, what was that, Chloe?” 

The blonde shook her head. “Nah, that would be ridiculous. Nothing.” 

“Hmm.” Marinette hummed, chewing on her food, frowning when her jacket sleeve slipped down, revealing a few faded scars. 

Chloe nodded in approval. “You haven’t been hurting yourself. Good.” She smiled. “That’s more like it.” 

Marinette blushed. “I have you to thank. It’s hard to believe we went from enemies to best friends in like, two days.” 

Chloe scoffed. “Don’t be ridiculous, Dupin-Cheng.” She punched Mari playfully across the table. “We’re still enemies.” 

—

“You smell _way_ better.” Chloe commented as she caught a whiff of Damian’s jacket as the three friends ( _Classmates, Chloe said. Just classmates and nothing more._ ) descended down the stairs towards the road. 

Damian rolled his eyes. “Did I ask you for an opinion, Bourgeois?” 

“She’s right, though.” Marinette interjected with a smile. “Did you put on some cologne or something?” She sniffed. “You smell like flowers and macarons.” 

Damian groaned internally as Tikki (The one who showered him with ‘cologne’) giggled within his hoodie. 

Chloe moved closer to get a whiff. “Ooh, she’s right. You’ve got to tell me what brand this is, it smells utterly _wonderful_.” 

“Is ‘utterly’ your favourite word, Bourgeois?” Damian snarked. 

Chloe shrugged as they reached her limo, parked neatly outside the school gates. “Well, guess who gets to walk to the bakery on his own. If you say sorry, maybe I’ll reconsider.” Marinette laughed in the background at her two friends. 

“As if I’d apologise for something that’s true.” Damian snorted. “See you in ten, Bourgeois. Bye, Mari.” 

The two girls laughed as Damian grumpily begun his walk to the bakery. 

“Since when did he start calling you Mari?” Chloe pondered, smirking at Mari after the car begun to drove off. 

Marinette paused, a confused look going over her face as she scrunched up her eyebrows. “I didn’t notice.” 

Chloe threw her hands up exasperatedly. “The two of you are so blind, I give up. It’s utterly ridiculous.” 

—

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Leave a comment and tell me what you think~
> 
> (Also I swear the chapter title basically screams hi yes Cady is running out of chapter name ideas)


	9. In Which Mari Begins To Suspect

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Does anyone think the story is moving too quick? When I first wrote this, I didn't really plan ahead (Ahahaha please don't be like me do plan out what you're going to do if you write multi-chapter stories okay) so the plot is essentially stuff that I come up with on the spot. I'm also aware of the inconsistency of language, which, like I said, is why this story needs a mass edit.

—

“Hello, Damian.” Sabine greeted warmly as the boy strolled into the bakery, an exasperated expression on his face. “The girls are already upstairs.” 

Damian smiled politely and thanked the lady. “Thank you, Mrs. Dupain-Cheng.” He nodded, already making his way upstairs, remembering his way around from the last time he’d been inside. 

“Just Sabine will do, dear.” The short Chinese lady chastised, a smile on her lips. 

The youngest Wayne only nodded in response before he headed up, hearing the voices of the two girls before he actually saw them. 

“Try this one on!” Marinette’s excited tone caused a fond grin to flit over his lips, gone as he realised what he was doing. 

“This is utterly gorgeous!” Chloe gushed, and he could already feel his oncoming headache at her narrow range of vocabulary. 

Marinette squealed, footsteps sounding as the bluenette pushed her friend into the closet to change. Damian pushed open the trapdoor, looking around, wincing a little as he did so. Everything was just as… _Pink_ as he remembered it. “Hurry up, Chloe! I want to see how it looks on you!” 

Resisting the urge to laugh, Damian made himself known in the room by vaguely clearing his throat, catching Marinette’s sensitive ears. “Damian!” She grinned. “I’ve got the perfect thing for you. I drew it based on Robin after he saved our city the last time.” He blushed, feeling awfully honoured that she had created something after him. 

“You created something inspired by Robin?” He inquired, his voice cracking with slight emotion. 

He could hear her beam even with her back facing him as she shuffled through the shelves of clothes she had hung on the side of her room. Her tongue stuck out of her mouth cutely as she fumbled with the hangers, handling him a red, black, and green jacket, followed by some dark green jeans and a grey t-shirt with yellow lines along the sides. 

“Try these on.” She murmured, half to herself as she nodded in approval about the combination. “Chloe’s using the closet, so maybe you could get changed downstairs?” She suggested. 

Damian groaned. “After this, I owe you _nothing_ , An- Mari.” He stopped himself before he slipped, but he cursed when he noticed her eyeing him suspiciously, having caught the slip-up he nearly made a moment ago. 

“Yeah.” She mumbled, turning back to her table, where numerous sketchbooks lay open for her viewing. She twiddled a pencil between her fingers, biting her lip as she dug about with whatever she had. 

He laughed softly to himself, making his way downstairs to get dressed in his alter-ego inspired attire. 

—

“Chloe?” Marinette asked, needle and thread in hand as she flipped through her notebook furiously. “Would you prefer a running stitch or a slip stitch?” 

The blonde sighed, standing in a pastel yellow dress, rolled her eyes good-naturedly. “I’m honoured that you think so highly of me, Dupain-Cheng, but what on _Earth_ makes you think I know what either of _those_ are?” 

Marinette hummed appreciatively, observing the area she had to alter with a critical eye. “The running stitch it is.” She pursed her lips in concentration, threading in the black string she had in hand as Chloe made a confused noise in her throat. 

“Don’t question it, Bourgeois.” Damian commented, leaning against one of the columns in Marinette’s room. “You chose to be friends with her.” 

Chloe rolled her eyes. “As if you know what those jogging stitches are _anyway_.” 

Damian shrugged, entering the search on his phone. “As a matter of fact, _i do_. And it’s a _running_ stitch by the way, _not_ a _jogging_ stitch. A running stitch is ‘a simple needlework stitch consisting of a line of small even stitches which run back and forth through the cloth without overlapping’.” He recited, a smug smirk on his lips. “Any words, Bourgeois?” 

Chloe fumed quietly. “Marinette!” She whined. “You can’t possible let him win. I don’t lose! That’s utterly ridiculous!”

“Damian, say sorry.” Marinette hummed, not even looking up from her work. Damian made a strangled noise in his throat, an offended glint coming into his eyes. 

“I didn’t even-!” He protested, his pose agitated as he stopped leaning against the column. 

The bluenette hummed, shushing the both of them. “Shh.” She continued stitching the alters on Chloe’s dress as the blonde stuck her tongue out childishly at the green-eyed boy, who only pointed his middle finger back in response. Marinette rolled her eyes at their antics, concentrating on the stitch. 

Damian, leaning leisurely against the pillar, fiddled with the clothing he had on, his original set of t-shirt and jeans stacked neatly, folded, in the corner of the room. The jacket fitted just nice- Slightly larger, the way he liked it. The jacket was primarily black, with red, green, and yellow linings striped against the ends and collars. The Robin logo was well-stitched onto the right side, concealing a zip along the circle, which revealed a cozy pocket. The inside of the jacket was a silky material, with plenty of little zips and pockets to store little tidbits. He noted a small embroidment of a robin on the left edge, next to a cursive _Marinette DC_. 

The t-shirt was simple and grey, the material soft and slippery in his fingers. The jeans were well-fit yet they didn’t restrain his movements. Overall, he liked the clothes she gave him- He still had the simple shirt and slacks that she had given him that rainy day. They sat in a precious corner of his room, where he could see them every morning. 

After she finished fiddling with Chloe’s dress, she had the blonde try on another one- This one a beautiful pastel blue and white. The Mayor’s daughter was ushered into the closet as Marinette turned her attention to the dark-haired boy, who gulped at her critical gaze. 

“I’m surprised it fit this well.” Marinette murmured under her breath, not intending to let Damian hear her. “They were tailored for Robin’s size.” 

Damian glanced at her in surprise. He didn’t know that she’d taken his size on one of his nightly visits- She was slicker than he thought. Then again, it wasn’t the first time he had underestimated Marinette Dupain-Cheng. 

“So…” Marinette gestured at the things he was wearing. “How does it… Feel?” 

He paused before he answered. “Soft…? Comfortable.” He added. 

Marinette nodded in approval before she stepped back, scribbling some notes on her notebook. “They fit you well, but there still need to be _some_ alterations.” After some thought, she added: “They were made for Robin, so I suppose the size doesn’t exactly match up perfectly.” She pursed her lips, as if something confused her. “But overall I have a good idea of your measurements, so…” She flicked through her clothing rack. “Try these on.” She handed him a covered hanger of what he made out to be a dark green suit. “I’ll need to wash all these clothes before the show.” She said to herself, beaming as Chloe stepped out of the closet. 

As Damian stepped into the toilet to change again, he snapped out of his daze. He had felt so… Weird that Marinette had made clothes for his alter-ego without him knowing. Perhaps she was keeping them in case it rained and Robin dropped by for dry clothes? Whatever her reason was, he was going to find out that night. 

—

Marinette hummed, pleased, to herself as she set aside the four sets of clothing (Each) that she had finished altering for both Damian and Chloe. Plagg munched on a camembert macaron (He had insisted, she was disgusted), lounging in the little bean bag that Marinette had sewn for him. 

“I must say,” Plagg munched on his macaron. “I’m pretty proud of you, kid.” 

The bluenette smiled softly to herself. “I can’t wait. I feel a little nervous, and there’s a little of time constraint, but surprisingly I’m not that busy, and my homework was finished…” Marinette trailed off, it suddenly clicking to her why her schedule freed up. 

She looked behind her, where her classmates’ schedule used to be- Now it was replaced by a board filled with design ideas, with sticky notes of appointments and places _she_ needed to be, things and events _she_ wanted to attend. 

The moment her life started becoming about _her_ , it was as if everything brightened. 

“That’s why.” She murmured, Plagg stopping as he looked up, confused. Then he saw what she was looking at. “I’m living for myself now.” She said, smiling brightly. 

“About time, kid!” Plagg grinned. “That’s the spirit! Now, can I get more of this delicious macarons?” (Way to ruin the moment, Plagg)

Marinette rolled her eyes, giggling. “I could go and bake another batch. You finished the last batch _already_ , Plagg. What am I supposed to do with you?” She placed her hands on her hips, an exasperated sigh escaping her mouth as she dramatised her actions. “What shall I do with you?” 

“Angel?” A soft knock on her skylight-trapdoor thing informed her of Robin’s presence. “Who are you talking to?” 

Marinette swiftly grabbed a pastel pink sweater on her way climbing up to the trapdoor, Plagg quickly hiding in the hood, camembert macaron still in hand as he hid along the fur in the hood of the article. 

“Robin?” Marinette looked out, seeing the bird-named vigilante squatting next to the skylight. “You’re early.” She stated, remembering the time on the clock, which she had looked at moments before he knocked. He hadn’t been due for at least another twenty minutes. 

Robin shrugged. “Bumblebee took over patrol.” He scrunched up his nose. “You smell like camembert.” 

The bluenette hesitated in answer. “Yeah.” She answered truthfully. “I was baking camembert macarons.” 

Robin looked at her weirdly. “Camembert macarons are a thing?” 

“Apparently, _some_ people like it.” Marinette shrugged, chuckling as the chaos god in her hoodie scoffed, offended. 

Silence fell on the balcony as stars took their place in the skies, clouds clearing up to show the beautiful view. 

“Can I ask you a question, Robin?” Marinette asked softly, the breeze brushing against her dark blue locks. “You don’t have to answer, but… If you do, I want you to be honest with me.” 

Robin raised his eyebrows, but gestured for her to go on. 

“I… I don’t want to jump to conclusions, but…” Marinette hesitated. The question was just on the tip of her tongue: _Do I know you as a civilian?_ “Do you want hot chocolate?” She said at the last second. _Are you Damian Fu?_ “I’ve got some downstairs.” _Or Damian Wayne?_ She had remembered his name from the first day- The one and only slip up he made before he carried on with ‘Damian Fu’. _Who are you actually?_

Robin squinted at her. “Are you okay, angel? And yes, please. I’d like some hot chocolate.” Without thinking, he leaned forward, pressing a kiss to her temple. By the time he’d digested what he was doing, it’s already been done. Marinette stared at him, stunned as he fumbled for words. “Sorry- I just- Um- I- Sorry.” He sighed. “I don’t know what- What went over me. I shouldn’t have um- Sorry- I-” He groaned. Why did he have to suck with words?” 

She smiled softly. “It’s okay, Robin.” She leaned forward, pressing a kiss to his lips as he froze, staring blankly at her stunning, shy, bashful smile. “I’ll go get that hot chocolate.” 

—

 _What had she been thinking?_ Marinette groaned. _Why on Earth did she kiss him back on the lips? Where was she hoping that would go, anyway? He was a vigilante- And while she was one, too, granted, still-!_

“Bold moves, kid.” Plagg complimented as they made their way to the kitchen. Marinette shot him a dirty look, groaning as she heated to chocolate on the counter. “I approve.” He supposed Tikki’s kid would do for his precious kitten. 

“What was I thinking?” She mumbled incoherent words following her rhetorical question, a palmful of her dark hair in her hands as she groaned. 

Robin, hanging from the ledge above using his grappling hook, watched his angel make hot chocolate for the both of them, smiled lightly to himself. 

_Did he just fall in love?_

_Oh yes._

_—_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading and putting up with this very bumpy plot :)


	10. In Which Three Superheroes Becomes Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cross-posted from my tumblr (@/cadenceh2o)

—

Marinette was actually, very surprised. 

She wasn’t panicking at all. The Marinette of a year ago would’ve scrambled everywhere, screeching and breaking down at frightening degrees. Perhaps it was Plagg’s influence and the fact that the black cat miraculous rested on her ring finger. Perhaps that was what calmed her down. Or perhaps it was the knowledge that her two best friends of her life would be next to her no matter what. Or maybe… Just maybe, it was because she had a higher self-confidence. Her designs had been tailored and altered (Within 12 hours, mind you) to perfection and to her level of self-satisfaction, and she had hand-washed, blow-dried, and ironed then all, hanging them up in hangers, waiting for the great moment. 

“Did you hear? _Bruce Wayne_ is coming to Paris!” A student chattered to his friend. “ _The_ billionaire, Bruce Wayne!” 

“Woah! I hope we’re lucky enough to catch a glimpse of him.” His friend replied wistfully. 

“He’s done so much charity work!” Rose exclaimed, a wide smile of her face. “I hope I get to meet him!” 

Lila gave Rose a bright grin. “What a coincidence! Bruce Wayne is my godfather- I could ask him to talk to you if you want!” 

Damian rolled his eyes. “I thought Tony Stark was your godfather.” He muttered under his breath. Using his father’s name like that- Honestly, at this point he was physically fighting the urge to prove her wrong. 

“Really? That’s so great!” Rose exclaimed, stars glinting in her eyes. “You really are the best, Lila!” 

The Italian girl brushed it off casually. “I was best friends with his son, _David Wayne_ , in primary. Before I left Gotham, he confessed to me.” Lila sighed dreamily. “Unfortunately, I had to leave Gotham, but he promised that if we ever met again, he would date me. He said it was meant to be.” 

Damian was seconds from vomiting from sheer disgust. 

“Wow!” Alya grinned. “How old were you two when you met?” 

Lila flipped her bangs over her shoulder, a convincing, wistful smile on her lips. “We met when he was five.” She sighed, as if remembering a distant memory. “I used to play with his brothers, along with him. They were all so sweet and so nice to me.” 

Damian made a gagging noise in his throat, which did not go unnoticed by the bluenette next to him, who elbowed him playfully, gesturing for him to keep quiet. She pointed to her phone, which he was delighted to see, had the recording app on. Every word of Lila’s was being recorded, word for word, lie for lie. His lips lit up with a wide grin, a slightly (Only slightly) evil spark in his emerald eyes. Chloe resisted the urge to do her evil laugh. 

“What goes around, comes around.” Chloe sung in a sing-song voice, just loud enough for the three friends (Classmates, Chloe said) to hear. 

—

“Alright, we have everything!” Marinette breathed, checking over all her emergency materials and her backups of backup plans. Plagg hovered over her shoulder, a camembert macaron in his hand. The bluenette had rushed home as soon as school let out, taking the few hours she had before the show preciously. 

“Uh, kid, I think you’re forgetting something.” He said nervously. “Don’t _you_ need a dress?” 

Marinette froze, the gears in her brain realising exactly how correct the chaos god was. “God, you’re right.” Her gaze was fearful as she begin to panic (Habits die hard). 

“Calm down, kid!” Plagg forced out as he swallowed a mouthful of camembert macaron. “Don’t you have that gown that you were working on for Clara Nightingale? You could use that.” 

Her blue hair in between her fingers, Marinette shook her head. “No, I can’t do that. She’s my client, I can’t possibly-” The sentence was cut off with the bluenette’s continuous pacing. 

“What about the black dress you were working on a week ago?” Plagg reminded her. “You haven’t finished it yet, but there’s time.” 

Marinette’s eyes lit up. “Yes! I can finish that, yes, yes, yes.” She murmured to herself, shuffling over to her table where stacks of designs and fabrics lay in one giant mess. With a wave of his small paw, Plagg sorted out all the fabrics and made the workspace clear, which earned him an impressed look from his holder. 

“Hey, I can create chaos, but I can _solve_ chaos too, kid. I’m more powerful than you think. And this batch of camembert macarons are really nice!” Plagg shrugged, taking another munch. 

Marinette giggled. “Thanks, kitty.” She kissed him lightly on the cheek, dashing into her closet to dig out her unfinished dress- She had a fashion show to be at, and she needed to look _stunning_. 

Moments later, Marinette emerged from her closet with a hanger- With a gorgeous- Even half-finished- Dress hanging from it. Black netting- Tinged with silver threads- Formed the collar, dipping into a dark, velvety, black fabric. A heart neckline, perfectly shaped, would show just the perfect amount of the wearer’s collarbone. The top half of the dress was made to hug Marinette’s curves just nicely while the bottom half blossomed into a full, perfect ballgown. The folds of the dress were all evenly distributed. The bluenette had spent hours after school hand-sewing sparkly pearls onto the dress to make it appear like a night sky- Unfortunately, half of dress was still without it’s pearls. 

Marinette bit her lip, looking over the gown. “Alright, I can finish this. I have…” She glanced over at her clock. “Two hours until we have to start preparing for the fashion show…” She nodded steadily to herself. “I got this.” 

“You got this, kid!” Plagg munched approvingly. “Also, I’m just going to discreetly go steal some more of your camembert macarons from downstairs.” This earned him a disapproving look from his holder, but the kwami teleported downstairs anyway. 

—

_Ding-a-ling!_

A dark-haired boy stepped into the bakery, the familiar, sweet smell of the shop wafting into his nose. He had become accustomed to the sweet scent that came with the Dupain-Cheng’s bakery. 

“Good afternoon, Mrs. Dupain- I mean, Sabine.” He smiled sheepishly as the shorter Chinese woman wagged her finger playfully at him, the playful grin on her lips identical to her daughter’s. 

“Good afternoon, Damian. Would you like some macarons? Recently, Marinette’s been baking a lot of camembert macarons.” Sabine laughed, and Damian, who had no time to protest, could only thank her. The Chinese woman disappeared behind the shop for a while, emerging with a tray of pastel yellow macarons. Damian eyed the tray warily, and in a second, after he blinked, one of the macarons disappeared. He reared back, alarmed, but Sabine, apparently, didn’t notice and only offered him one of the macarons. He took it, looking around carefully. A black blur slammed into the wall, disappearing after that. He could’ve sworn that the black blur held a macaron in it’s hands- Or paws, whatever. 

“Thank… Thank you, Sabine.” Damian said, swallowing the macaron. He coughed, trying to muster up his courage. “Since… Since Marinette’s got her fashion show tonight, I was… I was hoping you could show me how to bake something for her, so I can give it to her.” He was more than embarrassed about his request, and the short, dark-haired woman’s bright beam wasn’t helping the situation. 

The woman nodded. “Ooh, so it’s a surprise? Of course, then! We should make some strawberry cream-puffs- Those are her favourite!” Sabine kept talking animatedly, leading him into the bakery as he filed the new information about his angel in a safe place in his mind. _Strawberry cream puffs. Strawberry cream puffs. Strawberry cream puffs._

“Tom, guess who’s here!” Sabine lead the awkward boy into the bakery kitchen, where the large man Tom Dupain was retrieving a tray of freshly baked _bahulu’s_ (I did my research on pastries okay) from the oven, with a dark blue mitten with a golden _MDC_ embroidery on the side- The trademark of Marinette’s work. 

“Hi.” Damian waved awkwardly, wanting to melt into a puddle right there and then. Maybe he’d been hanging out with Marinette too much- Her habits were rubbing onto him. 

“Well look who it is!” Tom exclaimed with a bright smile, Damian backtracking with a horrified smile as the big man reached for a hug. Damian coughed, being nearly strangled to death as he got bear-hugged until Sabine tapped her husband on his shoulder, gesturing to the pale, oxygen-deprived boy. “Oops.” Tom chuckled, scratching his neck nervously. “Sorry about that.” 

Damian coughed, catching his breath. “It’s- it’s fine. Um, can I learn how to make that…” He waved his hands around awkwardly. “Strawberry cream puff?” 

Tom’s eyes lit up. “Of course! That’s our little Mari’s favourite since she was five.” Tom handed him an apron. “Let’s get started, then!” 

—

“Yum.” Plagg licked his… Lips? Whiskers?- Patting his little paws together to get rid of the flour on them. Marinette was blasting music through her phone as she concentrated on sewing each, individual pearl down onto the ballgown. Each pearl was accompanied by a little spray of luminescent green sequins around it, dusted faintly to give a sort of glow around each pearl. She was about a quarter of the way down through within forty-five minutes. Things weren’t looking that bad. 

But then Hawkmoth just _had_ to be a bitch. 

“Akuma!” The screech of a citizen had Marinette snapping up from her work, wide blue eyes alight with panic. She glanced between her skylight and her ballgown, biting her lip. 

She groaned. “Fuck this, I hate Hawkmoth.” She grumbled, throwing down her needle, pearl, and string. “Plagg, claws out!” 

Damian, on the other hand… 

“Um, do you mind if I take this call for a sec…?” Damian coughed. 

Tom hummed, not having heard the scream of ‘Akuma!’ (Or maybe he just chose to ignore it, he was in his baking zone and nothing would interrupt him). When the big man didn’t reply, Damian just awkwardly shifted out of the backdoor, berating himself for not bringing his backpack with his Robin uniform. With no other choice, he held up the small, faintly spotted ring that he had stringed around his neck with a black chain. “Tikki,” The kwami giggled as her holder sighed in potential regret. “Spots on.” 

—

“Well look _who_ showed up.” Kitty snorted as the spotted hero ran beside her. 

Lordbug didn’t reply but only dashed ahead. He was determined to bake that strawberry cream puff for Marinette- He was determined to finish the entire process by himself. And if he didn’t want his cream puff to burn to bits, he’d better hurry up. “Let’s just get this over with. I’m rushing.” He told her curtly. 

Kitty rolled her eyes. “Yeah, you’re always so _busy_.” Internally, she thanked him for not taking his own sweet time with the akuma. She needed to get to her dress. 

“Any idea what it is this time?” Queen Bee asked as she joined the other two, flying alongside them. “And where’s bird-boy?” 

Kitty shrugged and Lordbug only coughed. “Maybe he’s busy…?” Kitty said, an unsure tint to her voice. “Pity, kind of hoped to see him today.” 

Queen Bee patted her shoulder reassuringly. “I’m pretty sure he’ll show up to the show.” 

Lordbug’s ears perked up. The show? What show- Wait… The _fashion show_?

“Let’s just focus on the akuma first. Any plans, Mister Bug?” Kitty asked, and it didn’t take a genius to sense how sarcastic she was being. “Since you show up for just about _every akuma,_ you should have a plan, _right_?” 

He shot her a dirty look. Then, to be fair, he couldn’t blame her. But the only reason _he_ never showed up was because he was busy showing up in his alter-ego! 

“LOLLIPOP!” Just ahead, a purple-green dressed infant stomped down the streets of Paris, causing destruction all around him. 

“Is… That a giant baby?” Queen Bee stuttered as she stopped short, flying in place. “I’m out, guys. I hate babies. They’re utterly horrible.” 

Lordbug squeezed his eyes shut. He wasn’t ready to deal with this shit- Heck, he’d fought so many Gotham villains, but none of them had the unpredictability of an _infant_! There wasn’t even any reasoning that could be done! 

“We’ll need more of us to bring him down.” Kitty pointed out. “No matter how clever we are, we need as many hands as we can get.” 

“Lucky Charm.” Lordbug murmured under his breath, blinking when a kettle dropped into his hands. 

“Of course! How smart. Let’s all have tea while a _baby_ destroys the city.” The yellow-black dressed superhero said snakily, sarcasm dripping off like venom. “What a _wonderful idea_ , Lord Buggy.” 

“Wait here.” He instructed. “Actually, don’t.” The baby was starting to approach them, if they stayed there they’d be smashed to pieces. “Try to keep him back, I have an idea.” 

Down below on the streets, one man wasn’t running, screaming in fear like everyone else. Bruce Wayne watched the spotted hero with curious eyes, a nagging feeling telling him it was someone familiar. 

—

“Have this.” Damian told Tikki distractedly, walking into Master Fu’s massage shop, handing her a sugar cube that he had bought from the grocery some time ago. They came in huge packs of 500 grams, and it was a great offer, so he had bought about ten packs. “What could possibly-” He caught sight of the large saxophone thing that Master Fu had in the middle of his massage room. “Could I… Recruit other holders?” 

Tikki nodded. “Why not.” She shrugged. 

“Chloe… Marinette.” He murmured. 

Tikki panicked. _Not Marinette!_ “There’s also a miraculous that allows you to, um, multiply yourself. You can go as both Lordbug _and_ Robin!” 

Damian grinned. “Good idea.” 

The kwami of creation gulped. Master Fu was going to kill them both. 

—

“How long do you think he’ll take?” Queen Bee asked, waving to the baby. “Here, you giant baby! C’mere!” 

“Are we assuming he’ll even come back at all?” Kitty Noir scoffed. “And come with me, baby! Here, August!” 

“No, look at me!” Queen Bee hissed. “I don’t know, I sure hope he comes back! Or else we’re going to die, and ‘Killed by giant emotional baby’ does not feel like a good way to die!” 

“Doesn’t look good on a grave, either!” Kitty groaned. “Here, baby! Do you want, um,” She looked around, picking up a large, donut sign that had been hit down by the akuma. “Giant donut?” 

The baby squinted at the black figure, but then concentrated at the giant, pink, circular thing she was holding. 

“LOLLIPOP?” The baby grinned, reaching for it, crashing onto the building that Kitty was on.

“Shit!” Kitty cursed, but she was trapped. The baby’s arms were locked on both sides of her, and the baby’s face was less than three meters away. 

“Kitty!” Queen Bee shrieked, her wings batting quickly to get to her friend, but someone else did before her. 

Not the baby, of course. Thankfully. 

A blur of green, yellow, and red flashed across the baby, who whined as both the black blur and giant donut vanished. 

“I leave you alone for two minutes, and you nearly get yourself killed.” Robin commented, the girl safe in his arms. He set her down at a half-demolished building, Queen Bee buzzing over (See what I did there? hehe) to check on her friend. 

“Alright, here’s the plan.” Lordbug, who swung by after kicking the baby in the eye, instructed. “Kitty, Bee, distract the baby. Robin and I will get the item where the akuma is.” 

Both Kitty and Queen Bee looked a little skeptical of Lordbug’s plan, but neither of them said anything as they ran off to distract baby August. 

“Here, baby!” Kitty whistled. “Come here, sweetheart!” 

“Here, baby!” Queen Bee mimicked. “C’mere and let me sting you!” Kitty shot Queen Bee a dirty look, resulting in the latter to merely shrug. “What?” 

“What, actually, is the plan?” Robin asked, a skeptical eyebrow raised. He had not realised how difficult it would be to deal with another one of him.

“We’ll lead August to the Eiffel Tower, which I can use my yoyo thing to surround, and we’ll make a makeshift play… box? Play something.” Lordbug said, ready-ing his yoyo. “Playpen.” 

“I don’t like you.” Robin stated. “You’re… Weird. Not like me.” 

Lordbug only smirked at his statement. “That’s because I’m your inner voice. The one you never use out loud.” 

“Huh.” This had some raised eyebrows from Robin, but he continued with the plan. He let out a sharp whistle, catching the baby’s attention. “YOU WANT A LOLLIPOP?” He yelled. “Come here, then, you big idiot!” 

Lordbug zipped off the to Eiffel Tower, which was just ahead now. The baby lumbered over towards the two males, a large grin on his face as he reached out for the bright, red… Insect? Doll? 

“Almost there!” Robin ran along the roofs, seeing Bee and Kitty following after the baby, not far behind. “Come on!” He let out another piercing whistle, which the baby clearly did not like. “Shit!” Annoyed, baby August slammed his hand where Robin was, only for Kitty to swerve in, breaking the roof of the building with her cataclysm, causing both of the superheroes- One superhero, one vigilante, actually- To fall into the building. 

“How’s it feel to have a maiden in shining armour save you?” Kitty grinned, a little breathless. 

“Honoured.” Robin replied, picking himself up. “Thanks for the save, but,” He yelped, jumping aside as August’s hand came through the hole in the building, feeling around for the two. “We should probably get going.” 

Kitty smashed a window with her baton (That destructive side coming out), and the two jumped out, careful to avoid to shards. 

“Oh hey, you’re still alive, bird-boy!” Queen Bee grinned, flying quickly as she gestured to the baby with a mirror, which reflected the sun into the baby’s eyes. 

“Bee, I think you’re agitating it.” Robin raised his eyes as the baby squealed angrily, stomping closer and closer to the tower. 

The flying hero didn’t seem to care. “As long as it gets into that tower, it’s fine. Lord Buggy, you ready?” 

A thumbs up from Lordbug was all there was before August stumbled into the area under the tower, Bee still flashing the light from time to time with the mirror. Kitty and Robin kept August busy when Bee wasn’t using the mirror, making sure the baby didn’t get out of the playpen that Lordbug was creating. 

“Get the bracelet!” Lordbug hollered as the baby begin to screech angrily. August thrust his fists angrily at the ‘playpen’ a.k.a his prison, and with a heavy swat, the tower begin going down. 

“Abort, abort! Get out of there, everyone!” Robin yelled, grabbing Kitty as he shot his grappling hook to… There was no near buildings to attach to. 

“Shoot it to me!” Queen Bee yelled, catching the hook with an oomph. “Hold on, both of you!” Robin scooped Kitty up in his arms, the both of them flying just out of August’s reach. “I hate babies!” 

The four superheroes gathered on the roof of a building. “Plan C, anyone?” Lordbug said tiredly. “That cream puff is probably already burnt.” 

“Try your lucky charm one more time.” Kitty suggested. “Maybe-” 

A large wrapper fell from the sky. “Ideas?” Lordbug said dryly. 

Kitty’s eyes twinkled in mischief. “Yep. We’re going to need…” She looked around. “Robin, do you think you could distract August for a while? We’re going to do some _wrapping_.” Her ring beeped. “Aaaand we’ll have to do this fast. Buggy, help Robin. We’ve got this.” 

The two boys ran off, grumbling while Bee flew Kitty to a lamppost. “This will do.” Kitty grinned. The two women wrapped the paper around the huge round, light of the lamppost, and Queen Bee adjusted the wrapper to look like a little bow at the end. 

“Perfect.” Queen Bee grinned wickedly. “I think I know what you’re doing.” 

Kitty shrugged. “I would cataclysm the bracelet, but I already used it, so…” 

“I get to sting the baby! Utterly wonderful.” Bee clapped her hands in delight. “Boys! We’re ready!” 

Robin swung off, narrowly getting missed. 

Kitty whistled sharply. “LOLLIPOP!” 

August’s head snapped up at the mention of his favourite word. “LOLLIPOP?” 

“Yes, LOLLIPOP!” Queen Bee grinned from her hiding place behind the lamppost. 

The baby stumbled towards them, and Kitty rolled out of the way as Queen Bee yelled, “VENOM!”, stabbing the stinger into August’s arm. “Bug, get the bracelet!” 

Kitty pressed the button that held the bracelet in place with her baton, extending it to get momentum she needed. Robin smashed the bracelet with his bo-staff, and Lordbug caught the butterfly with his yoyo. 

“Miraculous ladybug.” He mumbled, the swarm of magical ladybugs flying through the city to clear the destruction. 

“August!” Kitty sighed, picking up the confused baby on the floor. 

“Lollipop!” August squirmed, and the other three superheroes stepped back in disgust. 

August’s mother ran towards the four, a relieved expression in her eyes. “August!” 

“Here you go.” Kitty sighed tiredly. Her ring beeped for the fifth time- She was _seconds from transforming_. “Got to go. See you!” 

She jumped off, using her baton to propel her into the air. “I should get going, too.” Robin and Lordbug said simultaneously, glaring at each other once they finished their sentences. 

“Why do the two of you have the same necklace on?” Queen Bee asked, squinting at the mouse miraculous around the two’s necks. 

Cue the awkward laughter. 

—

Surprisingly, the strawberry cream puffs were _not_ burnt. A little overcooked, sure, but not completely burnt. 

Damian wrapped them up delicately in a box before tying it up in a pink ribbon. 

“Were you wearing that necklace just now?” Sabine asked as she helped him put the finishing touches on the cream puffs. “That silver coin.” 

Damian glanced at his neck, cursing. He forgot to take it off! 

“Yeah.” He said with a forced smile. “It’s a family heirloom.” 

—

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! :)


	11. In Which Bruce Tries To Meet His Daughter-In-Law (But Fails)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cross-posted from my tumblr (@/cadenceh2o)

—

Kitty dropped into her balcony seconds before her transformation dropped. She leaped off her bunk-bed-thingy into the middle of her bedroom, where the unfinished dress stood calmly. 

“Help yourself to the macarons.” Marinette told Plagg distractedly. “I need to finish the dress.” 

“Hey.” 

Marinette hummed, looking up to see Robin casually leaning against one of the pillars. She screeched, backtracking in surprise until her brain fully registered who it was. “Um, hey?” 

Robin blushed. “I know I shouldn’t be in your room unannounced but… I saw that you needed help.” He gestured to her dress. “And I thought if you needed a pair of extra hands, I could…?” 

Marinette bit her lip. “I suppose.” She smiled. “Alright, come here and I’ll run you through quickly.” She glanced at the clock, and quickly checked to make sure that Plagg was safely hidden in a little crevasse behind numerous fabrics and organisation shelves on her desk. “We have… Ten minutes until my friends get here. I need to have my dress done by then.” 

She quickly ran him through the process of sewing each pearl, and to no surprise, Robin was an attentive learner and was basically, the definition of delicate. His first pearl had been a little shaky, but the one after his first was near- If not- Perfect. He had even distributed the sparkles around the pearls proportionally- And that was something that took loads of practice. It had taken her weeks to perfect that skill, and he got the whole thing perfect after watching her just once. 

“There we go.” Marinette smiled, snapping off the thread as the last pearl went in securely. With the two of them working, fuelled by fiery determination- They’d finished the dress in no time. 

“I’ll be there.” He said, breaking the satisfying silence between the two of them. She looked up in surprise, the sheer happiness in her bluebell eyes making him blush excessively. “I’ll go there in my civilian identity, so you won’t see me- But I’ll be there.” He told her, smiling shyly. “Good luck.” 

Marinette coughed, her cheeks blossoming in scarlet, secretly really pleased that he had bothered to find out and to tell her. “Could I.. Get a good luck kiss?” 

He pulled her close, dipping her by the waist as he pressed a soft kiss to her lips, the little squeal escaping her throat almost making him growl possessively.

“Good luck, angel.” Robin whispered, shooting his grappling hook out before leaping from the balcony. 

Marinette watched, dazed as he left, her fingers rising to touch where he’d kissed her. 

“Marinette! I’m ready to rock that runway!” Chloe announced her arrival, slipping out of the trapdoor, snapping Marinette out of her daze. 

“R-Right.” The bluenette stuttered. “Right. The runway.” 

—

That was by far, Damian’s second kiss, and he couldn’t have been anymore flustered. It did bother him- He wanted her to love his civilian identity, too, so maybe one day he’d tell her- But as of then… He touched his lips, still slightly tainted with Marinette’s chapstick, and blushed. 

“Alright.” He dropped into a back alley, where he had stashed his extra clothes- He had, actually, stashed a lot of of his clothes everywhere in case he ever needed a quick change from being Robin. “I have a fashion show to attend.” 

—

“Perfect.” Marinette breathed as Chloe twirled once with her white-blue-and-yellow dress. The upper half of the dress was tailored to be skin-tight for Chloe while the lower half opened in a upside down tulip-shaped gown. White lined each fold of the gown, followed by a blue backdrop. The cute, rounded collar of the dress shone a pastel yellow, with the ends of the dress lined in yellow as well. 

“Now put this on.” Marinette ushered, handing Chloe another hanger, but this one had a white blazer on it. Yellow and black stripes alike to a bumblebee’s twirled along the white of the blazer, giving the whole piece a very striking feel. 

“Utterly gorgeous.” Chloe breathed, twirling around before flipping her hair. “Aren’t I gorgeous?” 

Marinette giggled. “Yes, yes you are.” The bluenette’s eyes twinkled. “Do you know what you’re missing?” 

The bluenette reached into Chloe’s purse, where Pollen was resting quietly. The bee brooch shone in the evening sun, and Marinette slipped in properly over Chloe’s silvery, blonde hair. “There.” She smiled. “You deserve it, Chloe.” 

The blonde’s lip trembled. She turned away, embarrassed. “I-I’m not crying, Dupain-Cheng.” 

Marinette pulled the blonde in for a hug, her arms looping around the dress to squeeze Chloe in for a hug that conveyed a thousand messages. 

_Thank you_. 

“Um… Hey.” Damian cleared his throat, an amused smile on his lips as the two girls turned to glare at him in unison. 

“We were having a moment!” Chloe snapped. “Be quiet. Get out!” 

Marinette sighed, letting go of Chloe. “Well, Damian, let’s get you changed, too.” She retrieved two articles of clothing from off the hanger, handing him a black button-up shirt, a pair of dark green jeans, and finally, a black-green vest to go on top of all of it. 

Damian took the hangers from Marinette, turning to go change. The bluenette stared as he left, the small pinch of green sparkles between his fingertips only adding more to her growing suspicion. 

—

“It’s the right size?” Marinette asked as she told Damian to move around and check if the blazer was just right for him. 

“Yes.” He nodded, a little worried. When he took to hanger from her, he’d used the hand with the sparkles on them- He didn’t have time to wash them off, and he only noticed when he went to change in the toilet. 

Shuffling over to her table, Marinette came back with a brush and and a bottle of hair spray. “Don’t move.” She instructed as she stood on her tip-toes, reaching up to tame his messy black bangs. 

Damian chuckled, kneeling down so she didn’t have to strain herself to reach up. The bluenette huffed, brushing his hair with more strength, making him wince in the process. 

“Okay, okay, I’m sorry.” Damian scowled. “Easy, an- Marinette.” He corrected. 

Chloe rolled her eyes at the two. “Hurry up! The show must go on, and it can’t go on without the main characters, okay?” 

—

Bruce sat in the front row of the fashion show, his finger lingering over Damian’s number. Before he could decide on whether to call is son, however, the lights flicked on. 

Meanwhile, in the backstage, the designer was pepping up her models as she handed the both of them black masks that would help conceal their identities (Paris is blind, just a mask will make you unrecognisable). “You’ve got this!” Marinette grinned. “Fighting!” 

Chloe nodded confidently, tying the mask around her head, avoiding her hair, while Damian only smiled warmly to reassure the bluenette. “We’ll be fine.” He told her, putting on his own mask, knowing she was only trying to calm her own nerves. He leaned down, pressing a soft kiss to her palm. 

Marinette made a purring noise in her throat softly before she caught herself. She cleared her throat, her own mask in hand. “Um, good luck?” 

“ _Let’s give it up for the MDC line!_ ” The MC announced, and the two took that as their cue. 

“Presenting to you- _Bumblebee in the Sky._ ” 

Chloe stepped out first, the white, blue and yellow dress catching the eyes of many in the crowd due to it’s striking palette. The white blazer flapped fiercely in the wind that was supplied by the large fans towards the side, and the blonde strutted on the walkway, flipping her hair, striking a pose on the end of the walkway. Cameras flashed at the unique design of the bumblebee stripes on the white blazer, and the audience clapped. Chloe turned back towards the entrance, and Damian was ushered out. 

“ _Nightingales in the Dark_.” 

He was a little uncomfortable with the lights and cameras- But he was a Wayne. He was used to it. 

The audience murmured about the unique, shiny fabric that was the dark green base for the suit. The black button shirt, under the sight of the spotlights, revealed spiralling, silver designs that detailed of nightingales and ivies. It was only when the light shone down on it, it would reflect and glow against the dark fabric. 

Damian glowered fiercely at the cameras as he stood on the end of the walkway, catching sight of Marinette stuffing Chloe into the next design out of the corner of his eye. He had to take his time- So that Chloe had enough time to change. Changing his pose, Damian saw an ‘ok’ sign from Marinette, and headed back inside as Chloe emerged with her next ensemble. 

“May I present to you- _Majesty_.” 

The next dress was the pastel yellow masterpiece that was clearly inspired by Queen Bee. Chloe’s blonde hair danced in the wind gracefully, the brooch on her hair sparkling bright and golden.

The crowd awed at the pastel dress- Golden detailing lined the dress the same way they lined Damian’s shirt- They would only show under the light. Golden threads told of numerous, graceful bees that were waltzing in the wind, and colourful threads painted flowers and grasses along the edge of the dress, bringing out colours of red, dark blue, emerald and ivory white. 

Chloe posed more than multiple times for the camera, each camera fighting for cover-page photos of the gorgeous dress. 

Meanwhile, Damian was busy putting on his next set- The grey t-shirt with his Robin jacket. When he emerged from the changing room, Marinette had a knowing smile on her lips. 

“Ready?” She asked softly. He nodded, smiling in reply. 

“Ready.” 

—

When Bruce first saw Damian onstage, it was definitely not what he had been expecting. He had never thought Damian would be modelling- That said quite a lot about the girl, if she was able to convince Damian to model. 

He had taken more than one photo and maybe shed more than one (1) tear. 

After the spectacular piece that was _Majesty_ , Bruce had been throughly awed by the aspiring designer. 

“Now, let’s give a round of applause for a piece that was inspired by one of Gotham’s superheroes- _Robin_!” 

Damian stepped into the light, feeling more than comfortable in the jacket that was made for him.

The jacket gleamed in Robin’s primary colors- Black, red, green and yellow. The R logo sat above his heart, the silver zip gleaming under the brightness of the spotlights. The hoodie had been pulled up, revealing white fur sewed into the lining of the hoodie, similar to how the actual Robin’s uniform was like. The grey t-shirt he wore under the jacket was fluid and soft, the black jeans perfect for active movement.

The click of cameras went of in what seemed like the distance as Damian sensed Marinette’s eyes on him, seemingly full of pride. 

He wondered if she was thinking about what _Robin_ would think if he were in the crowd? 

—

“That was a success!” Marinette beamed. “Even though there were only four ensembles, it was really good!” 

Chloe and Damian felt their hearts warm at the sight of the bluenette jumping around in excitement. 

“Now, all that’s left is the closing act.” Marinette smiled. “I prepared two more ensembles for you two, we’re probably going to need to go out and take more pictures.” She shrugged.

Chloe groaned. “More?” 

A giggle escaped the bluenette’s lips. “Once we’re done, I’ll treat you both to coffee and some cake, okay?”

—

The cameras went wild as the two models finally walked out in the last piece they had to present. 

Damian wore a Lordbug-inspired piece. A white button-up shirt peaked out from below his black and red sweater, paired with a pair of black-and-white checkerboard loose slacks. A grey jacket was tied around his waist, and to top it off, a black cap with ‘Lordbug’ embroided on the front sat on his dark bangs. 

Chloe wore a Kitty-inspired outfit. A large, black sweater with the words ‘Meow’ stitched in bold white in the middle caught the hearts of many. Chloe had pulled up the hoodie of the sweater, revealing cat ears sewn on the hoodie itself. A dark blue, plaited skirt revealed a pair of long socks with the pattern of cat’s whiskers on Chloe’s legs, finished by a pair of green-black boots. 

The crowd lost it. The headlines the next day would read ‘Paris’s Superheroes Inspired MDC’s First Line’. 

“Now, let’s introduce MDC herself- Wearing her own original!” The audience sat on the edge of their seats, anticipating the great designer who had created all of the wonderful masterpieces that they just saw. 

The two models stood on both sides of the walkway, matching, proud smiles on their faces as the shy bluenette pushed past the curtain that blocked the view of the backstage. 

She was truly, the star of the show- Literally. 

Black netting- Tinged with silver threads- Formed the collar, dipping into a dark, velvety, black fabric. A heart neckline, perfectly shaped, showed just enough of Marinette’s collarbone. The top half of the dress hugged Marinette’s usually concealed curves while the bottom half blossomed into a floor-length ballgown. The folds in the ballgown were evenly distributed, the pearls among the fabric like shining stars in the sky. The sprinkled, emerald sparkles only emphasised on the concept of making the pearls alike to stars. 

Marinette blushed, brushing a strand of her dark blue hair behind her ear. 

“Let’s give a round of applause for MDC!” 

The hall exploded into thunderous applause, marvelling at the young designer standing on the stage. “Tell me, how do you feel?”

Marinette cleared her throat, her black mask only framing her bluebell eyes flawlessly. “Well, actually, I’m a little overwhelmed.” She laughed, immediately capturing the hearts of the Parisians on sight. Bruce’s heart warmed, like _I’m going to adopt that kid_. 

“It’s my first time publicly letting my works go out, so I was quite nervous.” MDC admitted. “But I’m really, really happy with how it turned out, and I have to thank my wonderful models for that.” 

The MC nodded approvingly. “Well, MDC, do you plan to start your own brand, seeing as how popular it’s going to be?” 

MDC nodded. “I’ve always wanted to start my own brand. Starting tomorrow, the MDC website will be open for commissions.” She smiled. 

The crowd chattered excitedly at the announcement, and Bruce nodded approvingly. The girl was confident, independent, and polite. Truly, this girl that Damian had found one-of-a-kind. 

“Will you be planning on revealing your identity one day?” The MC asked, holding the mic to Marinette’s lips. 

MDC hummed, contemplating on her answer. “Perhaps one day I will,” She said truthfully. “But as of currently, I’d rather keep it under wraps until I’m old enough to reveal it.” 

The crowd gasped in surprise. 

“Yes, I’m underage.” MDC revealed, “I’m still in school, and I’m still studying. Maybe after I graduate, I’ll announce my identity.” She bowed. “Thank you for coming to my fashion show today, everyone.” She smiled softly. “It makes me really happy. Thank you once again.” 

Cameras scrambled for pictures. 

“MDC, can we get a picture of you and your models, please?” They implored. 

Alya scrambled against the flow of the adults, jumping up and down excitedly. “MDC, can I get a picture with you, please?” She grinned. “I’m the Kittyblogger!” 

If it was six months ago, Marinette would’ve gladly gave Alya a photo, but now was different. 

“I’ve brought my own camera person.” She told the crowd politely. 

Aurore pushed her way through the crowd, an honoured smile on her lips. “MDC, can you and your models face my camera, please?” 

Chloe and Damian glanced at Marinette for confirmation, and she nodded. The three stood together, smiling as Aurore took pictures of them, the other cameras scrambling to stand behind Aurore to get photos as well. Once the girl was done, Marinette gestured for the two to go backstage. 

“Thank you so much, everyone.” She bowed politely, leaving to go backstage with the rest. 

Once backstage, they found Aurore waiting. 

“You ready for the interview?” She asked, a smile on her face. “Once again, I must thank you, MDC. It’s an honour.” 

Marinette brushed it off. “I need to thank you. Right, um, I think I’m ready.” 

Aurore begin recording, and gave Marinette the ‘ok’ sign. 

“Hello, everyone. My name is MDC, and I’m a designer.” She smiled. 

“MDC, what are your designs primarily inspired by?” Aurore asked from behind her camera. 

MDC tilted her head, making a thinking face. “Well, they’re mostly inspired by people around me. As you saw, some of the ensembles were inspired by the superheroes that have been protecting our city.” 

Aurore nodded, giving Marinette a thumbs up. “Just now, on stage, you announced that you would be setting up a website and that you would be accepting commissions. How much, on average, will the commissions be?” 

“That depends.” Marinette paused. “As you saw, the fabric I use for the ensembles are not ordinary fabrics- In fact, some of them I made myself. The embroidery on the fabrics take quite some time as well. I only use the best materials for my works, so it’ll depend on what materials I used and how much those were.” She gave an apologetic look. 

Aurore nodded in understanding. “I understand. Your art is a rather detailed art, after all, it takes up a lot of effort. How much time do you use to make one ensemble?” 

“That depends. Before, I used to be really busy as my ex-friends used to commission things out of me without paying, so my schedule was really packed up. However, I am pleased to announce that my schedule has been cleared up, so it should take an average of one week to two weeks for a commission, however, if it takes a lot of hand-work, it might stretch up maximum to two months.” 

Aurore nodded. “Thank you so much for interview, MDC. I wish you luck in your line of work, and I look forward in seeing more of your designs!” 

The camera clicked off, and Aurore squealed. “I cannot thank you enough, Mari!” 

Marinette sighed in relief, taking off her mask. “I’ll have to thank you, you’re helping me advertise.” 

Aurore paused, digesting the thought. “I suppose so, but you’re giving me my chance to be a famous blogger!” Aurore sighed dreamily. “I promise I’ll take this seriously.” 

“I’m sure you will,” Marinette groaned tiredly. “Right, who wants coffee and cake?” 

—

Bruce sat on his seat, not moving, still waiting for the three to come out from behind the curtains. He wanted to meet his future-daughter-in-law, after all.

Most of the crowd had dispersed- In fact, practically everyone had left. It was just Bruce, being a lonely old man by himself in the entire hall. 

At last, he decided to just call his son. 

“Damian.” 

“ _Yes_.”

“Where are you?” 

“ _…Why_?” 

“I need to meet my daughter-in-law.” 

“ _No_.” 

And then he hung up. 

Bruce looked up only to see three teens sneaking out from the side door. He shook his head, sighed, and went back to his hotel. 

—

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! 💕


	12. In Which Lila Lies (And No One Is Surprised)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cross-posted from my tumblr (@/cadenceh2o)

—

The school was abuzz with chatter. Students everywhere gossiped about MDC’s show, everyone sharing their opinions about the newly-debuted designer. Some people sharing their opinions more than others. 

“I knew her since we were four!” Lila declared. “When we were kids, I used to be her model.” 

The girls in the class fawned over the fact that Lila, yet again, knew another famous person. MDC had bloomed into an overnight sensation- ‘Majesty’ crowded over magazine covers, but the Lordbug and Kitty Noir outfits were not overshadowed. Many pages were dedicated to the fashion show that had taken place the previous day, each and every article complementing on the designer’s skill and talent- And she was so polite, too! (Not to mention she was _really_ pretty~)

Aurore was smiling widely as students flocked her, asking how she’s managed to get an interview with MDC before MDC even debuted. She smiled and brushed people off politely, saying that she was just lucky. The sour look on Alya’s face was unmissable, so Lila quickly jumped to the chance. 

“Oh, I’m so sorry, Alya.” The Italian pouted as she apologised. “I did mention you to MDC, but she said she already found a blog to interview her. I’m sure she’ll ask you to do the next one, though! She was really sorry that you didn’t get your chance since she already asked Aurore.” 

The ombre-haired girl brightened up immediately. “Gosh, that’s so nice of you, Lila! And there’s no need to apologise.” She cast a dark look at Aurore. “She got in by luck, I’ll get in for _talent_.” 

Across the classroom, Chloe snorted. The trio had been lounging at the back, listening to the conversation with… Various feelings about it. Damian was downright _furious_. How dare Lila claim she knew MDC when MDC was bullied by her _everyday_? Chloe was rather amused- She couldn’t wait to see Lila’s face when Marinette revealed herself after their graduation. Marinette was rather… Unbothered. Karma would be back for the Italian girl when the right time came- There was no need to get her own hands dirty. 

“I still feel so sorry you didn’t get the chance, Alya.” Lila pouted and shed a pitiful tear. “To make it up to you, I’ll ask MDC to do a commission for you. She always said that since _I_ helped her to her success, she’d make a dress for me _anytime_.” 

Awe and jealousy glinted in every girls’ eyes. Alya beamed enthusiastically. “Lila! You’re always so kind, thank you! I’d _love_ to get a dress from MDC!” 

“Too bad she’s not actually getting one.” Chloe glanced at her nails, a bored expression on her face. Marinette shot her a playful look, which the blonde shrugged off. 

Luckily, Chloe’s remark was unheard by the excited girls, who continued to crowd around Lila until Madame Mendeliev snapped her book on the table, yelling for everyone to get back to their seats. Still, the excitement lingered in the class, and the skip in Alya’s pace spoke enough of how disappointed she’d be on the next day.

—

“Alya, please forgive me.” Lila sniffed pitifully as she cried. “I asked MDC, but she said she was flocked with commissions overnight and she can’t get to yours until she’s finished all the rest!” 

Alya’s face fell as her eyes dulled in disappointment. She’d been looking forward to good news from Lila, but clearly, the only thing that the day had brought was bad luck. The ombre-girl tried to keep a straight face as she reassured her friend. “It’s alright, Lila. I’m pretty sure she was really busy anyway.” She chuckled and shrugged it off, but everyone could see the stiffness of her body, the slump of her shoulders, and the tears prickling on her eyelids. 

Damian let out a little chuckle, his green eyes twinkling in satisfaction. “What did I say?” 

“Pft.” Chloe laughed softly, her amusement clear in her eyes and her relaxed position. “Too bad, Cesaire.” 

Marinette glared at both of them. “Play nice!” She hissed. Her two friends took one look at each other and shrugged, uncaring of the disappointment and lies that constantly hovered over that class. 

It was no longer, _their_ class, after all. 

—

The call was pretty much expected. 

“Damian.” The stern voice of his father made it clear that it was unarguable. “I _demand_ to meet the girl.” 

Although it was already a made decision, it didn’t mean Damian had to be _happy_ about it. “Fine.” He grumbled. “I’ll ask her. But no promises.” 

Bruce made a grunt in his throat, his excitement not showing through his facial expression but his eyes. Blue orbs sparkled in excitement as the papa bat waited patiently to meet his little robin’s newfound mate. 

—

“Um, Marinette…” Damian coughed awkwardly into the phone. “My… Um, father wants to meet you.” 

The bluenette blinked in confusion on the other side of the line. “Um… Why? Did I do something wrong?” Damian heard his heart crack a little at the concern in her voice. _No, you didn’t do anything wrong, my dad just wants to see you. Because he’s a busy body who can’t keep his nose out of my business._

“No, no it’s nothing like that.” Damian sighed, shooting a sharp glare at Tikki, who giggled as she munched on a sugar cube. “It’s just- Um- He kind of guessed that you’re MDC and he’s impressed.” 

Marinette sighed in relief. “Oh, then should I bring Chloe as well?” 

The green-eyed Gothamite wanted to groan. _No, not Bourgeois._ But on second thought, Marinette would be more comfortable and assured with the blonde there. “Ye- Yeah, actually, why not.” 

“Great! I’ll call her now. Do I have to dress formally? Where are we meeting your father? Should I bring any gifts? Macarons? There’s still time for me to bake a cake!” Marinette’s frantic rambling made a little smile creep up the emerald-eyed’s lips. Tikki giggled at how hopeless her miraculous holder was- And at how frantic Plagg’s holder was. 

“We’re meeting him at a restaurant, so maybe dress formally. And no, you don’t need to bring any gifts, ange-” Before he could finish, he was cut off by the bluenette’s insistent rambling.

“You know what, I’m going to bake a cake. I saw a really nice recipe online the other day _and_ I think it would be a good idea! I’ll, um, get started now, does your dad like cheesecakes? What about peaches?” 

Damian wanted to laugh. Gosh, he loved the bluenette. “Yes, he likes cheesecakes, and yes, I’m pretty sure he’s fine with peaches as well.” 

“Alright then! I’ll get going now, I have a cake to bake! See ya in a bit, Dami!” 

And then the phone call ended. Damian laughed to himself, Tikki watching with a warm smile as the emerald-eyed boy fondly thought of his bluenette classmate. 

—

Chloe was leaning leisurely on her bed, flipping through a fashion magazine. And then her phone rang. 

She frowned, picking up her phone. The caller ID read ‘Bluenette’. The blonde sighed, clicking the answer button. “What is it, Dupain-Cheng? This better be important. You interrupted my magazine reading session.” The blonde grumbled. 

“ _Damian’sdadwantstomeetusapparentlyheknowsI’mMDCandsoyouneedtocometoobecauseyouwereoneofthemodelsand-_ ”

Chloe blinked. “Okay, go over that again, but _slower_.” 

Marinette took a deep breath. “Damian’s dad wants to meet us, apparently he knows I’m MDC and so you need to come too because you are one of the models and I’m baking a cake to bring and we have to dress formally because it’s going to be a formal dinner.” 

“Okay.” Chloe breathed. “And this has to do with me because I need to go?” 

“Yes, and I’m calling because _do you want some peach cheesecake_?” Marinette’s bright voice made a little grin dance across the mayor’s daughters lips. Really, it was impossible to not laugh when you were talking to the world’s brightest little bluenette. 

Chloe sighed as she got off her bed. “The cake better be good, Dupain-Cheng.” 

—

The bakery smelt of cream cheese and peach syrup; Chloe sighed as she breathed in the satisfying scents. “That isn’t actually half-bad, Dupain-Cheng.” 

Marinette giggled. “Well, the big cake will be for Damian’s father, you can have all the tarts if you want.” 

The bluenette baker had baked seven cakes- A giant cake, and six miniature versions of the cake- Tarts. The bottom of the cake was a strong layer of sponge cake, followed by a cream cheese mixture. Atop the cream cheese was a layer of raspberry jam. After that was a jelly made from peach syrup- And inside the translucent jelly was cut up pieces of peach. Marinette had garnished the cake with some decorative flowers, sprinkling some strawberry powder above everything for the final touch. The baker girl delicately slid the cake into a pretty, white box, tying a perfect ribbon to top everything. 

“That, is really not bad.” Chloe hummed. “I appreciate this, and much more, for my birthday.” 

The bluenette laughed. “Sure, Chloe.” She smiled warmly at her blonde friend, bluebell eyes twinkling in happiness. 

_Ding!_

The front door of the bakery opened, and Sabine called out for the two girls at the back of the kitchen. “Marinette! Your friend’s here!” 

“Coming, mama!” Marinette replied, hastily (But carefully) lifting up the box, tugging the ribbon one last time to her satisfaction. 

“Marinette, that ribbon is the _definition_ of perfection. Stop fidgeting with it.” Chloe rolled her eyes. “Let’s go!” 

The bluenette hummed, following after her blonde friend with a bright, happy smile on her face. 

Little did she know, she was about to meet her father-in-law. 

—

“You must be Marinette.” Bruce smiled warmly, holding a hand for Marinette to shake. The girl panicked, awkwardly trying to figure out which hand to use to shake Bruce’s hand as she held the cake box in her hands. Damian resisted the fond chuckle that was building up in his throat, reaching over to take the cake from Marinette as the bluenette shot him a grateful look. 

“You’re Bruce Wayne.” Chloe deadpanned, shooting glares at Damian. “Damian never said he was _the_ Damian Wayne.” 

The boy shrugged. “I was going under Fu’s name since I was living with him.” 

Bruce nodded. “And you must be Ms. Bourgeois.” The blonde smiled, reaching over to shake the billionaire’s hand as well. 

“Um, I baked a little something for you.” Marinette smiled shyly. “I hope you like cheesecakes?” 

Bruce’s eyes conveyed nothing but surprise. “You can bake?” 

“Father, Marinette is a baker’s daughter. Her parents own the most popular bakery in all of Paris.” Damian cut in, his emerald eyes practically yelling threats at his father. 

“I see.” Bruce nodded approvingly. “Ms. Dupain-Cheng is truly a very talented individual.” 

The said girl blushed fiercely, spluttering out her thanks. Bruce smiled at how polite and awkward the girl was- Truly, his future daughter-in-law was one of a kind. 

—

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! :3


	13. In Which The Fun(d) Begins!

—

A week after the initial MDC debut was the weeks in which a few things would take place. A few small tests that later contributed to the overall marks of their exams would be given, and there was going to be the school’s first fundraiser of the year. 

Each class _or_ club would need to create a booth of some sort, selling whatever they wanted- And the money earned would contribute to whatever sort of trip they could afford from their earnings. 

Now, it was a common thing for Marinette to get extra commissions from the other classes during this time. Theatre club needed someone to do costumes, some other classes that were selling goods needed some posters, and the student council would sometimes ask for Marinette to help organise the event due to her great organisation skill. Numerous people needed things from her- And the great thing was, unlike her class, these people understood that her effort couldn’t just be brushed off as a mere ‘favour’. 

Due to this, Marinette felt really, really excited for the first fundraiser of that year. She was free! She no longer had to work her ass off for the fundraising of her class- Since they had personally told her so. This was how it went: 

“What are we going to do this year?” Rose asked curiously, her eyes beaming with excitement at the thought of the fundraiser- And more importantly, the trip it would later contribute to. 

“A bake sale, obviously.” Alya announced as a matter-of-factly. “That’s what we always do for the first fundraiser.” The girl turned to Lila with a bright grin. “You’ll see, Lila, this’ll be very fun! And by the end of the year, we can always go to great places- Last year we went to New York!” 

Lila’s eyes glimmered greedily as she listened to Alya’s wild recounts of the places they went before. Then she caught the eye of a particular bluenette who was sitting at the end of the class. Her heart darkened at the thought of the trio going to a trip with them- She wasn’t going to let them off that easily. 

“You know, Alya, I’m really excited for the first fundraiser.” Lila begin, pouting. “But I’m afraid the three of them really don’t like me and because of that they might not help during the bake sale, and they might mess everything up!” She whimpered sympathetically. “I really don’t want the whole class to lose their trip just because some people are uncooperative with me.” 

The class murmured in agreement, some of the students going to comfort Lila and some other students sending sharp glares at the three at the back of the classroom. Damian and Chloe both shrugged the glares off, being used to being disliked, while Marinette just pursed her lips and continued sketching in her sketchbook. The glares were plain out ignored. 

“You don’t have to help out for the fundraisers this year.” Alya spat out acidly. “But you won’t be coming for the yearly trip either.” 

Damian shared a look with Chloe as Marinette continued to ignore the class and sketch. “Sure.” He shrugged. “I don’t mind.” He really didn’t- Marinette had informed him that if the class kicked them out of the fundraiser, she had already secured a place for the three of them in the art-drama club alliance. They would be fundraising with another group of their own, and they would go on a separate trip. 

“Where should we go this year?” Rose asked dreamily, thinking of the magnificent trips they had in past years. 

Alya opened her mouth to say something, but closed it again as she searched for a cool place to go in her mind. “Um…” She fumbled with her words. “What about…” She looked around desperately, looking for any sort of idea. 

“You know, that looks like it was inspired by Gotham’s gargoyles.” Damian murmured at the back of the room, pointing at one of the sketches on the page. Marinette giggled. 

“That’s right! I based it off some pictures I found on the internet.” She told him, Chloe humming as she peered at the page. 

Alya snapped her fingers, grinning triumphantly like it was her own idea. “Let’s go to Gotham this year!” 

The class cheered in excitement, and of course Lila didn’t let the opportunity escape. 

“That’s great! We could go meet my childhood friend, Damian Wayne!” Lila smiled happily. “He used to like me, you know?” 

The class fawned the liar once again as the three at the back sighed and ignored the commotion. “Seriously, do any of them have brains?” Chloe scoffed, narrowing her eyes at the idiots that were their classmates. Damian Wayne was _actually_ in their class- And the blonde had just met Bruce Wayne a week ago. 

Damian leaned back into his chair, snorting and feeling glad that he had been kicked out of the class fundraiser. “Obviously not.” 

A knock on the door interrupted the fawning session. Annoyance lined Lila’s eyes for whoever disrupted her moment. A brown-haired girl peered in, eyes brightening when she spotted the bluenette at the back. “Sorry, could I see Marinette please?” 

The bluenette looked up, smiling at the sight of her fellow student. “Tara!” She skipped down the steps of the classroom, avoiding her classmates gracefully, landing at the front of the door, where Tara was patiently waiting. The brown-haired girl gestured for Marinette to lean closer and whispered something in her ear- Something that made Marinette’s eyes light up. “Damian! Chloe!” She called her friends, her giddiness making fury boil in Lila’s heart. The two friends of the bluenette sighed tiredly at each other before joining their excited sunshine friend at the front of the room, both passing by their classmates with a cool aura. 

Tara eyed the two suspiciously. “You sure you trust them, Mari?” She whispered in the bluenette’s ear, making Damian growl defensively. 

Marinette nodded surely, grinning at her friends. “Positive.” 

And so the four students left the classroom, leaving the classmates in rumbling confusion and Lila in boiling anger. 

—

“So, what’s this all about?” Chloe raised an eyebrow, demanding an explanation from the bluenette. Damian hummed, already having guessed that it was about the art-drama club alliance. 

“Well, I sort of guessed that Lila would kick us out of the fundraiser, so I talked to the presidents of the art and drama clubs, and we decided to start out own fundraiser!” Marinette grinned. “We’ll get to go on our own trip during summer break, too.” 

“And with Mari planning, we’re going to have the best trip ever!” Tara exclaimed, grinning from ear-to-ear. “It’s going to be awesome!” 

The bluenette smiled. “Chloe’s a pretty good planner, too! She was class president before I was.” 

Tara made a face. “And now that _Alya_ is class president, I hear? Well, I couldn’t care less- But the greatest thing is you _finally_ left that class! Gosh, Mari, they were just taking advantage of you. This year’s trip is going to be so! Awesome!” The brown-haired girl jumped in excitement, pushing the door open to the art room, where a few other students had already gathered. “Alright, guys! I told you all that we’d have some good news to tell today- Marinette’s joining us!” Tara looked at the blonde and the green-eyed boy behind Marinette. “And her friends, too.” 

The students in the room cheered and clapped, delighted that the school’s best artist and planner had decided to join their little gang. 

“Introduce yourselves.” Marinette told her friends with a grin. “Come on!” 

Chloe rolled her eyes. “Chloe Bourgeois.” 

Damian sighed exasperatedly. “Damian Wa-Fu.” 

Tara furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. “Damian Wafu?” 

“Damian _Fu_.” He cleared his throat, ignoring the sniffled laughs of the two girls behind him. 

“RIght…” Tara nodded. “Anyway, I’m Tara, president of the art club, and here we have members of the drama club. Thanks to Marinette, we’ve called an alliance, and we’ll go on a trip together during summer holidays with our shared earnings.” 

“I’m Madeline, president of the drama club.” A blonde girl introduced, hopping down from one of the cardboard boxes that were piling at the back of the room. “Alright, since everyone’s here, we’re confirming that no one else will be joining _or_ leaving this group until the fundraiser’s all over.” 

Tara nodded, looking at her art club members- The students all nodded and gave thumbs up. 

“Okay, so here’s the plan.” Marinette stepped forward, taking a deep breath. “We’re going to run the usual fundraising events- Bake sales, car wash, maybe a fun fair or two, and _maybe_ , just _maybe_ we might have a little fashion show, since your presidents both asked for it.” The bluenette grinned at the drama and art club presidents, both of which smiled sheepishly. 

“But while we run the usual funding events, we’ll also be preparing for the grand finale.” Tara paused for dramatic effect before announcing loudly: “A play!” 

Madeline nodded. “We’re still getting the script together,” She gestured at the two script writers belonging to the drama club. “And once that’s done, the art club will start putting together sets, backgrounds, costumes, props and all that sort. We’ll also have people from the art club running lighting and backstage stuff while the drama club performs onstage.” 

Damian hummed. “Sounds interesting.” 

Tara nodded her thanks at his interest, smiling at the fact the cold-looking boy had offered his opinion. “Does everyone understand?” 

The art and drama club chorused their ‘yeses’, excitement filling the air with the thought of the play at the end of the year. “That’s great! I’m going to need everyone to come up here and put their phone numbers on this paper, we’re going to create a group chat.” Marinette announced, borrowing a piece of paper and pen from a nearby art student. 

The club members swarmed forward, scrambling around to write their names and phone numbers. “Once you’re done, return to your classes. Tomorrow we’ll be meeting here again to discuss the audition dates for the drama club and the roles for the art club.” Madeline yelled over the noise. “Meeting dismissed!” 

Chloe crossed her arms angrily at the bluenette. “You planned this, and you didn’t tell me?” The girl basically screeched at her bluenette friend, who held her hands up in surrender sheepishly. 

“Sorry.” Marinette apologised. “It was kind of a we-planned-it-last-night thing.” 

“Then why does _he_ know?” Chloe pointed an accusing finger at Damian, who shrugged. 

“I called her last night.” He said nonchalantly. 

—

After Chloe had calmed down, she talked to the script writers of the drama club, requesting for a copy of the script, which they happily gave. She made (surprisingly) little criticism, but she requested for them to make a few changes here and there. Damian hung around near Marinette, who was patiently telling everyone to write their phone numbers and names. When all the art and drama club members had filed out, both Damian and Chloe scribbled their phone numbers of the paper, which was then kept by Marinette. 

“Alright!” The bluenette smiled, patting the paper which was in her jeans pocket. “Shall we get back to class?” 

—

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Leave a comment and tell me what you think :3


	14. In Which A Suspicion Forms

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cross-posted from my Tumblr (@/cadenceh2o)

—

“So, what’s the plan?” Queen Bee asked, hovering with her blue wings flapping quickly in the air. Kitty turned to look at Lordbug, who hesitated as he tried to throw something together. 

“Improvise!” Lordbug yelled, jumping out of the way to avoid blast from the magic-enhanced akuma. “Scatter!” 

Kitty and Queen Bee didn’t have to be told twice. Both superheroes jumped away, using their now-smooth agility to navigate smoothly between buildings. Kitty wasn’t even thinking anymore- Her mind just went into auto-mode and she let herself leap and run gracefully across the rooftops of Paris. Whistling sharply, she smirked when she caught the akuma’s attention. 

“Over here!” She yelled out, a cat-like grin on her face. The akuma growled, diving for the cat miraculous holder. The akuma was a girl who had been told witches weren’t real, by the way- So she was riding a cute little broomstick that had been… Akumatised? In a horrible looking way. Hawkmoth was _not_ good at designing objects. Kitty had to admit, though, the akuma’s outfit itself for pretty nice. 

The black cat miraculous holder continued to lead the akuma on as Lordbug and Queen tried to figure out a way to end the akuma. Avoiding a few blasts gracefully, Kitty scowled at the akuma as she saw the destruction she left behind. “Hey! This is destroying property.” She crossed her arms. “I thought being cat-tastrophic was _my_ job!” 

Down below on the streets, Adrien Agreste watched with wide eyes as the superhero engaged in playful, pun-ful banter, leaping out of the way as she cleverly moved around on her nimble feet, a cunning glint in her beautiful sapphire eyes. 

“H-Hey!” Kitty pouted as her baton got blasted away from her onto the streets below. Panic filtered slightly through her mind as she realised she was defenceless. In his lair, Hawkmoth cackled, feeling one step closer to his ultimate goal. 

The akuma blasted more times at Kitty, who now had to move extra quick on her feet due to not having her baton to help her block the blasts. The blue-haired superhero bit her lip, eyeing where her baton lay down in the street. Taking a leap of faith, the cat-superhero jumped down agilely from the rooftop, using the frames of windows and balconies to help her way down. The akuma wasn’t making it any easier- The witch akuma shot blasts at Kitty as the said superhero tried to make her way down, said hero shooting glares at the akuma as she narrowly avoided another blast, hanging off a balcony. Kitty growled in frustration, deciding to just let herself fall onto the pavement, hoping that her agility would catch herself. 

Her feet pattered gently on the pavement, and Kitty smiled, pleased. Her happiness didn’t last long, though, as the akuma went after again. 

“Kitty Noir!” Adrien yelled, her baton held in his hand. She turned, just in time to see him throwing her baton in the air. She smirked, jumping to catch it, extending it and whacking the witch right in the head with it. 

The blonde teen’s eyes sparkled with admiration as he watched the superhero battle the witch, Lordbug and Queen Bee coming down to join their comrade in the battle. The three slowly but surely overpowered the villain, and a quick cataclysm, venom, and lucky charm later, the akuma was captured and a white butterfly took to the skies. 

Queen Bee shot a venomous (Get it???) glare at Adrien, who only blinked confusedly. Lordbug wasn’t any better- The superhero rolled his eyes at the blonde in distaste. Queen Bee sighed- What did she ever see in him, anyway? The boy was a passive lump of mud that was easily manipulated by any liar that came along. Kitty was unaware of all the glaring that was taking place behind her- She was too busy talking to the now-un-akumatised child. 

A new crush begin to bloom in a particular blonde’s heart as he stared at the beautiful, seemingly-perfect blue-eyed cat hero. 

—

“What’s wrong with him today?” Chloe scowled at Adrien, seeing the boy looking dazed and love-struck. 

“Don’t know, don’t care.” Damian grumbled, shrugging. “I don’t see what you saw in him, Bourgeois.” 

Chloe shot him a dark glare. “You are aware that _Marinette_ used to like him, too?” She smirked as Damian’s face dropped in disgust. 

“ _Bastard_.” Damian growled under his breath, seeing Adrien in a new light- A deeper shade of hatred. The blonde snorted. 

“Hey, dude!” Nino greeted, lifting his cap up as he smiled at the blonde boy. Adrien nodded dreamily, not really paying attention to what was going on. Nino blinked in confusion, waving his hand in front of the blonde’s face. “Dude? Hello? Dudeee?” 

Adrien snapped out of his trance, blinking his innocent green eyes in confusion. “Um, hi, Nino.” 

The DJ frowned. “You alright, man?” 

The blonde sighed dazedly. “Yeah~” Nino blinked, Chloe snorting in laughter as she watched Nino’s reaction. 

“Well ain’t that hilarious.” Chloe snorted, hand subconsciously going up adjust the position of the bee brooch on her hair. Damian noticed her movement, eyes frowning as she realised that the silver brooch looked an awful lot like- 

Marinette was busy sketching, her finger concentrated on making the smooth lines across the page to complete the whole picture. Damian’s eyes narrowed on her ring finger, where a slender, feminine silver ring hid in plain sight. It- It couldn’t be, right…? 

The bluenette noticed Damian’s fixated stare at her ring finger, and she glanced down to realise that was where her cat ring was. She panicked, retracting her hand, making Damian snap up into attention. They made eye contact, and Marinette couldn’t help but notice there was a pendant under Damian’s shirt- A coin-shaped pendant. 

Memories flashed past the bluenette’s mind as she remembered that both Lordbug and Robin wore the same pendant on their necks that one akuma- What, were they twins? She frowned in confusion. If that was true, then- Was Damian Robin _or_ Lordbug? 

Chloe whistled her friends to attention. “Class’s starting.” She told them, noticing how Damian’s eyes lingered on her hair for a moment longer. She narrowed her eyes suspiciously at him. 

Was there something else besides his last name that Damian was hiding? 

—

“Mari!” Chloe burst into the bluenette’s room in annoyance. Mr and Mrs Dupain-Cheng had gotten pretty much used to the mayor’s daughter bursting in at random times, and the blonde more or less treated the place as her own house. There was more than one time when Chloe just burst into the bakery, making her own way up into Marinette’s room after a hurried greeting at the bakers. 

“Oh, hi Chloe.” Marinette said, focused on the dress that she was sewing. “What’s wrong?” 

“Guess who I just saw leaping out of Damian Wayne-Fu’s bedroom window.” The blonde crossed her arms. 

Marinette hummed, not really listening but gesturing for Chloe to go on. 

“Lordbug. Holding a Robin uniform.” Chloe raised her eyebrows, waiting for the bluenette’s reaction. Marinette flinched back, looking up from the dress. Her mind darted past bits and pieces of information, and she frowned. 

“The pendant.” Marinette murmured. “Is it possible…” 

“Unless Damian Wayne has a twin that no one knew about-” Chloe frowned. “But they showed up at the same place once. That akuma.” 

“Yeah, but remember that pendant?” Marinette reminded. “Both Lordbug and Robin wore an identical pendant.” 

The blonde slumped dramatically on Marinette’s spinning chair. “Ughhhhh why is this so confusing.” 

The bluenette laughed. “Come on, Chloe.” She hummed thoughtfully. “Maybe- Maybe that pendant allows there to be two of him.” 

Chloe blinked. “You know, Mari, you’re a lot smarter than people give you credit for.” The bluenette shrugged, grinning. 

“I try.” Marinette winked, making both girls burst into laughter in unison. Their rivalry had bloomed into a beautiful friendship, and it would continue to grow as days and months passed. 

—

“Okay, so here’s the plan.” Marinette cleared her throat, pointing at the board. Chloe stared confusedly at the mass of sketches and incoherent writing that was on the whiteboard, not really understanding but nodding anyway. “I have patrol tonight, and normally after patrol, Robin comes to my balcony for some hot chocolate or whatever.” She shrugged. “So while he’s at my place, you’re going to make it to his- House?” 

“I’ve investigated it. He lives on top of Fu’s place.” Chloe narrowed her eyes. “Coincedence?” 

Both girls made eye contact as they yelled the next phrase in unison. “ _I think not!”_ They burst into giggles again as Marinette coughed and tried to regain her composure. 

“Okay!” Marinette cleared her throat. “You’ll stake out in front of his house, and we’ll wait for him to return to his- House? And if he goes back to Fu’s place- In Robin or Lordbug’s identity- We’ll know.” 

Chloe nodded. 

Marinette hesitated. “You know, this afternoon, he kept staring at my ring finger. Where I wear my ring.” 

Plagg hummed as he sat on Marinette’s shoulder casually. “You know, kid, you’re not supposed to find out each other’s identities.” 

“I mean, he probably suspects I’m Kitty already…” Marinette faltered. “I know I’m not being responsible as a miraculous holder, but-” 

“Nah, forget it, kid. I’m not that strict about the rules- Rules are meant to be broken!” The cat kwami brushed off. “Can I have some more cheese macarons?” 

Pollen joined the cat kwami, beaming at Marinette. “And could I have some croissants, please?” 

The bluenette giggled. “Okay, I’ll go get some. Come on, Chloe.” The blonde grumbled at having to get up and walk, but she followed the bluenette none the less.

“Do you girls want something to eat?” Sabine asked kindly. Marinette thanked her mother but shook her head, the kwamis hiding in their respective holders’ clothes. 

“It’s fine, we’ll sort ourselves out.” Marinette smiled, heading over to where she kept her cheese macarons. 

“You know, those cheese macarons that you keep making- They’re actually pretty good. A few customers bought them today.” Sabine told her daughter with a smile. “I ate one myself!” 

Marinette returned the smile, picking up a few macarons off the tray. “Glad to hear that, ma.” Inside her hood, Plagg scowled at the idea of his macarons being eaten by someone else. 

“I’ll buy a croissant.” Chloe told Sabine, fetching some money out of her bag before Sabine stopped her. 

“No need- Here you go.” Sabine handed her a plate with the croissant, which Chloe thanked for with the kindest smile she could muster (You got to give her credit, okay). 

Outside, the sun was already slowly setting on Paris, engulfing the city of love in warm, orange-pink light. In the bedroom of a particular bluenette, a mission was commencing. 

“Alright.” Plagg munched on his macaron. “I got food in my belly, I’m ready to get up to some chaos.” Pollen nodded in agreement, taking another bite out of her croissant. 

Chloe smirked. “Operation Damian Wayne- Begins- Now!” 

—

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Haha did the reveal go down too fast? I feel like I dragged it on for too long though... 
> 
> Thank you for reading! Leave a comment and tell me what you think! (One more chapter to cross-post and I'll hopefully start working on a new one :3)


	15. In Which Operation Damian Wayne Is A GO!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cross-posted from my Tumblr (@cadenceh2o) 
> 
> This one's pretty short! Enjoy :)

—

Patrol was fairly uneventful. Kitty had come to enjoy the sheer thrill of practically _flying_ through Paris’s night sky, watching the city light up in whites and yellows. Wind vibrated in her ears sonorously, a rhythm forming in the _tap, tap, tap_ of her feet as she touched down on roofs and balconies to provide the momentum for her next jump. Her technique had improved vastly into a flawless dance that her brain could activate without thinking much: It was like her eyes just immediately saw a path on the roofs and her body just carried out the action. 

Music rumbled in her ears as she neared the docks, hearing the faint strum of Luka’s guitar. The teal-haired boy was lounging casually on the dock, guitar in his relaxed hand. Looking up, aqua eyes met bluebell ones, and he gave her a soft, kind smile, which she returned with a wave. In the next moment she was gone, soaring over rooftops and streets with the agility of a natural feline. 

“Goodnight, Paris.” She whispered, the quiet aura of the city surrounding her, comforting her, thanking the hero for protecting the city and everyone in it. Baton extending, she leapt off the Eiffel tower, making one quick route around the city for good measure. 

Adrien yawned, peering out of the giant window by the side of his room. It was getting late, he thought, and was about to head to bed just as he heard the familiar, clear, metallic note of a baton extending. His green eyes trailed up towards the window, aligning with the fates in a moment to catch the cat-hero leaping past his bedroom. His jaw dropped. Her dark blue hair was dancing behind her in a braid, her bluebell eyes refined and sharp in comparison to the dark sky. 

For a single moment, the blonde model could feel his heart stop. 

And the next, she was gone. 

—

The transformation wore off just in time, because Robin was knocking on her skylight in the next. Had he been a moment earlier, he would’ve caught Kitty Noir standing in Marinette’s room, and the bluenette would have to come up with the most convincing ‘correlation does not equal causation’ explanation _ever_ , and she didn’t have that much confidence in her ability to convince him otherwise. 

“Evening.” He greeted politely, smiling at the beaming bluenette, who (Suspiciously) looked slightly breathless. 

“Evening!” She replied brightly, catching a little more of her breath. “I made some lime-flavoured pastries today. Would you like some?” 

Robin shrugged and smiled thankfully. “Yes, please.” 

Marinette beamed, pleased that he wanted to try the pastries she’d made. There was the same, warm, polite glow inside Robin’s eyes that made him, undoubtedly, Damian. The bluenette smiled with growing affection, leaving the vigilante in confusion as he stayed perched on the balcony. 

A few lime macarons later, they had fallen into a comfortable conversation, which consisted majorly of Marinette talking excitedly about the ideas she had for funding, and where she was hoping the whole club could go once they had gotten all their funds. Robin watched the bluenette fondly as she chattered on in excitement, the spark of passion in her eyes making him fall even more. 

Halfway through their conversation, Marinette’s phone dinged- Without a doubt, it was a text from Chloe regarding Operation Damian Wayne. She ignored the text, continuing to talk animatedly about her ideas and so. 

Glancing at his watch, Robin decided it was getting late. “Thank you for the pastries, angel.” He thanked softly, reaching for her hand so he could press a kiss on it. A pleased feeling spread through his body like heat as the bluenette blushed. “Goodnight, angel.” His grappling hook shot off into the sky, his eyes catching sight of the gleaming silver ring on her hand as she raised it to wave at him. 

“Night, Robin.” 

—

Queen Bee, clad in her superhero attire, wrapped in a dark jacket (Because was she that hard to spot in the dark if she was wearing bright yellow?), eyed Damian’s window with an amazing alertness. Marinette had shot her a text, saying that Robin had left her balcony minutes ago. Knowing the bird-themed vigilante, it wouldn’t take him more than two minutes to basically fly over half the city. 

Sure enough, the whizz of Robin’s grappling hook sounded a few moments later, followed by the vigilante himself. He glanced around, slipping into the window when he thought no one was looking. The window snapped shut after a few moments, Queen Bee smiling victoriously as she concluded that yes, Damian Wayne had to be _at least_ Robin, if not Lordbug, too. 

_[Queenie] 11.36pm_

_Operation Damian Wayne is a positive._

_[Minette] 11.37pm_

_Drop by my place if you want some macarons~_

_[Queenie] 11.39pm_

_As if I would stoop so low as to go to your balcony at 11pm just for pastries-_

_[Minette] 11.40pm_

_You’re on your way, aren’t you?_

_[Queenie] 11.42pm_

_… Just to discuss the results of Operation Damian Wayne._

Queen Bee huffed, landing on Marinette’s balcony and wishing she would wipe that innocent smile off Marinette’s face. The bluenette knew that Chloe loved the newly-created lime-flavoured macarons, and just wouldn’t admit it. 

“Just to clarify,” Bee announced. “I’m just here to discuss the results of Operation Damian Wayne.” 

“Sure.” Marinette hummed in agreement, already pushing a macaron into Bee’s hand. 

—

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's all the chapters cross-posted! I'll be working on Chapter Sixteen soon, thanks for all the love and support! *insert heart emojis because I'm on laptop* mwah! 
> 
> Thank you for reading! Leave a comment and tell me what you think :3


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